


Spirals: An Examination of Symbolism, Character and Romance in The Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir.

by SteelBlaidd



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Character Analysis, Dragons, Meta, Miraculous Ladybug Love Square, Other, References to Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, TV Special: Miraculous World: New York
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-10-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:14:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 21,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24460399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SteelBlaidd/pseuds/SteelBlaidd
Summary: I started watching Miraculous back when it first hit Netflix and anxiously awaited each new season to drop. Life slowed me down on getting to the last half of Season Three, but when I did I immediately rewatched the whole show in half a week, then mainlined Fanfic like a strung out junkie.I’m not as gifted in writing narrative, but I can do analysis like nobody's business, so I thought I would contribute to the fandom with an examination of the archetypal patterns, symbolism and mythic resonances present in Miraculous:Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir (MLB), which I think are part of what make it such a fertile source for inspiring transformative works and secondary creation.I call this seriesSpiralsbecause the story elements will be examined from different angles several times and some points will probably be repeated as they are relevant in different contexts.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Nino Lahiffe, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Kagami Tsurugi, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Kagami Tsurugi, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe, Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 55
Kudos: 58
Collections: March Meta Matters Challenge, ScribeSmith's Fanfic Library





	1. First Principles

**Author's Note:**

> Included in the 1989 collection N-Space are six laws titled Niven's Laws for Writers. They are:
> 
> 1\. Writers who write for other writers should write letters.  
> 2\. Never be embarrassed or ashamed about anything you choose to write. (Think of this before you send it to a market.)  
> 3\. Stories to end all stories on a given topic, don't.  
> 4\. It is a sin to waste the reader's time.  
> 5\. If you've nothing to say, say it any way you like. Stylistic innovations, contorted story lines or none, exotic or genderless pronouns, internal inconsistencies, the recipe for preparing your lover as a cannibal banquet: feel free. If what you have to say is important and/or difficult to follow, use the simplest language possible. If the reader doesn't get it, then let it not be your fault.  
> 6\. Everybody talks first draft.
> 
> I try to keep these as best I can and, as this essay is hard stuff, if I have broken number five in particular (or better, if you think i'm wrong) let me know in the comments so I can fix it.

Sir Terry Pratchett called human beings _Homo Narativis_ \- ‘The Storytelling Ape’ - because our capacity to tell stories is what distinguishes us from every other thing on earth.

In 1949 Joseph Campbell published _The Hero With a Thousand Faces_ and essentially began the study of Comparative Mythology. In it he described the Hero's Journey, which he argued was one of the fundamental patterns that underlie _myth_ , myth being defined as the stories that really _matter_ for explaining ourselves to ourselves.

Like the orbits of planets, the pattern of the Hero's Journey is built on the interaction of the matter (character, setting, plot) of the story with the fundamental principles and forces that underlie narrative and the motifs, tropes and symbols that are used to express them.

At base, all story is built of three elements, or principles, expressed through the particular people, places, and events that make up the text. These elements are The Individual, Order, and Chaos. 

### The Individual

This is the place from where we see the story and the world.

Most commonly realized as the Protagonist, sometimes the Antagonist, but in any story this is the person or people through whose eyes the story is experienced, even if only briefly. This element is critical for any story because we are not omniscient impartial observers; being someone standing somewhere is how we experience reality. In his commencement address, _[This is Water](https://fs.blog/2012/04/david-foster-wallace-this-is-water/), _ David Foster Wallace made the observation:

everything in my own immediate experience supports my deep belief that I am the absolute center of the universe; the realest, most vivid and important person in existence. ... it’s pretty much the same for all of us. It is our default setting, hard-wired into our boards at birth. Think about it: there is no experience you have had that you are not the absolute center of. The world as you experience it is there in front of YOU or behind YOU, to the left or right of YOU, on YOUR TV or YOUR monitor. And so on. Other people’s thoughts and feelings have to be communicated to you somehow, but your own are so immediate, urgent, real.

In order to get out of our own heads we must have someone else’s to get into.

Stories are how we learn to see the world through different eyes, learn empathy and critically rehearse for things that haven't happened yet in our lives. We do this by seeing through the eyes of the characters from whose point of view the story is told. Not all characters in a story take this role and some do only briefly. MLB takes particular advantage of both its format, as an episodic serial, and its premise to get the audience to see the world from different points of view. Not only do we observe the world through the eyes and over the shoulders of the two main heroes and principal antagonists (Gabriel, Chloé and Lila) but through every one of Hawk Moth’s Akumatized victims.

### Order

At its basic level this is the realm of the Known. The place where we know who we are and what's expected of us and others. This is the safe place behind the high walls where nothing unexpected happens. This is Civilization with all its comforts and restrictions. Soothing routine and stifling restriction. In order dwells the wisdom of the past and ossified tradition. 

From the Latin _ordinem _(nominative _ordo_ ) "row, line, rank; series, pattern, arrangement, routine," originally "a row of threads in a loom,". All things in their proper place making the whole smooth and strong. 

It is Home, the State, the ladder to success, the rat race and the cold dead rules. This is Reason™ and Logic™, facts, and the plan. Order demands Justice and permits Mercy. Its symbolic representations are most often (but not always) male, The Good King and the Evil Empire, Lady Justice, Father Time, the Church Ladies and town gossip, the aged wizard and the veteran cop, last year's champion and the old money. Its aspects are the sun and light and fire by which you can see the path ahead. Air that fills the open plains and the wide boulevards and plazas. 

### Chaos

This is the realm of the Unknown. Yin to Order’s Yang. This is where everything is new and different, full of shocks and surprises, fear and excitement. This is the realm of adventure, the place beyond the horizon and over the rainbow, the dark woods, the deep cave, Dagobah, the black depths of the stormy sea. Here there be Dragons. Out of chaos grows new life and new ideas. It is novelty, variety, and the future whether bright or terrible. It’s a random wander through the new downtown and losing your way in the trackless waste with no helpful sign stating “You are Here.” 

From the Greek word _Kháos_ , meaning abyss. As Chaos precedes Creation, it means that something new is about to start. In Greek, it has the same etymon of the verb _Khaíein_ : to open oneself to face the unfathomable.

This is the domain of intuition and emotion, the lucky guess and serendipitous discovery. Its symbolic representations are frequently female. Mother Nature, Coyote, the witch in the swamp, the gorgon, the fairy godmother, the princess in her tower. This is darkness and secrets, the moon in her phases and the sea in her moods, the earth that brings forth fruits and all good things in their season and the raging waters that destroys all in it’s path.

### The Dao

The Dao is the way, how things are and ought to be. All things that were and are and are to be are in the Dao. The Dao is all that is known and all that is not known and the dancer that treads the line between the two. Chaos, Order and the Individual. 

The Dao is the combined representation of Order/Yang(white) and Chaos/Yin(black). There is a spot of each in the territory of the other to show that both principals contain a seed of the other. The border is curved because chaos is constantly giving rise to new order which falls into chaos again in an endless cycle. Creation and destruction are the forces that drive the cycle forward. Note that in the miraculous box Plagg’s ring is the black spot in the white teardrop and Tikki’s earrings are the white spot in the black.

Order and chaos can each be unbalanced not only in relation to each other but in themselves as well. In the [ Nicomachean Ethics ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicomachean_Ethics), Aristotle defines virtue as the mean between two opposite vices, either of excess or deficiency. Too much of something can be as bad as too little. The overabundance of order is easily recognizable as bad, whether it is a totalitarian government, ancient and unyielding tradition or the ossified social structures of the local high school. Over abundance of order freezes the world brittle as ice. A deficit of order is sometimes harder to recognize. This is not just the absence of needed rules but can also be a system where everyone knows the rules can be bent, for a price. This is the dying hierarchy, Rome waiting for the Barbarians. It is just as predictable as its counterpart, just predictably corrupt. 

Chaos also gets to be wrong in all sorts of ways. Unbridled chaos is not only the howling hurricane or the clash of armies but also the over lush garden that sucks you in and feeds you fat until you cannot move. It’s the ever scrolling twitter feed, Amazon’s infinite bounty, the constant ding of slots in the casino in the Hotel California. This is Mother Gothel who will give you everything you need, except the door to leave your tower. 

Each of the characters in Miraculous illustrate different balances and aspects of Order and Chaos. Frequently this is done as part of a pair of contrasting characters who mirror each other in significant ways. Many characters will be part of multiple reflective sets.

The base structure of the story. What you get when you strip the hero's journey down to the absolute bare bone or find the lowest common denominator of [ the Seven Basic Plots ](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Literature/TheSevenBasicPlots), is this: 

  * The Individual sets out from the current order (good or bad) 
    * leaving the known for the unknown (Chaos),
  * There, in Chaos, they encounter new things and trials that challenge their abilities.
  * Finally, they return home to reconstitute a new order based on what they have learned in the land of Chaos. 



If they do it well, you get a happy ending (The Lord of The Rings), if they do it poorly you get the bad end (Hamlet). 

(For a more detailed break down see [this post](https://miraculousfanworks.tumblr.com/post/627800148781809665/the-dan-harmon-story-cycle-power-structures).)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My great gratitude to my Betas [Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs), [Keyseeker](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Keyseeker), [Itookyourpen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Itookyourpen/pseuds/Itookyourpen) and all the rest of the Fabulous people at the [Miraculous Fanworks Discord](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks)
> 
> I've got the next Chapter ready to go and will publish in two weeks which should _hopefully let me get ahead of this at a two week interval._
> 
> _Next Section is on Chloe._
> 
> _I LOVE Chloe._


	2. The Woman Wearing the Queen Bee Mask

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I should start by saying that I LOVE Chloé. I find her both terribly sad and hilarious, utterly hilarious. 
> 
> She is a great character. 
> 
> She is also a HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE person.
> 
> In many ways she is more broken, and for better reason, than anyone else in the whole show.
> 
> This chapter is mostly about Chloé, but by necessity touches on her parents and Sabrina and Sabrina's Dad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I started writing this whole series because of this chapter, which was partially inspired by [this tweet about some of the fan reactions to Miracle Queen.](https://twitter.com/Thomas_Astruc/status/1242554186438451201?s=20)

###  **Parental Influence**

In RogerCop, Officer Raincomprix and Mayor Bourgeois provide a perfectly matched pair of disordered Orders. Officer Roger is what we're most used to thinking of as “bad” order, the extreme and harsh enforcement of “the Rules”. We watch him ticket Mdm. Mendeleiev as she comes into the school, and when he's driving Sabrina to the station in _Startrain_ he is frustrated that he can't stop to ticket jaywalkers and other petty infractions. Even his refusal to arrest Marinette demonstrates this as the rule is “innocent until proven guilty” and an accusation is not proof. This tendency to strict literal enforcement of the law is taken up to eleven when he is Akumatized. 

The Mayor is just as bad in the opposite way, as he is always ready to bend the rules or twist them to his own, or more accurately Chloé’s, benefit. He is just as ordered as Roger is, it’s just the order of the Godfather and his mob (La Cosa Nostra), reduced of course to a kiddy friendly form. 

These two dis-orders flow down into their daughters. Sabrina loves her dad and has bent herself to his order all her life. Away from home she fits herself into Chloé’s order and her dad is PROUD of her for that (“‘To protect and to serve’ that's our Raincomprix family motto.” see _Startrain_ ). She has no order in herself and is constantly looking for someone else to provide it. This is what frustrates her when she tries to be Marinette's friend in _Evillustrator_. She thought she knew the rules of being a friend, then Marinette “changed” them, then changed them back by Sabrina’s estimation. Chloé is a jerk, but she's a consistent one, and consistency is what Sabrina needs more than anything. 

That need for external structure is both the source and manifestation of both her Akumatizations. She thought she knew how her friendship with Chloé worked and then it changed. As Vanisher she conforms herself to the new order Chloé has established, Chloé says she isn't there so she becomes invisible. That she then proceeds to torment Chloé doesn't change that she is doing so in the context that Chloé specified. As Miraculer by stealing the Miraculous powers she is stealing the manifestation of each hero's ordering principle, the thing that defines (i.e. gives order to) them. She does this so she can restore the game, the order of her relationship with Chloé.

Note: This is the pattern with all the Akumatized victims. Something has thrown their world out of order and they are given power that will let them impose the order they desire on it, making the world conform to their will. 

Insufficient Order is Chloé’s great lifelong tragedy. After her mother leaves, and shatters her world, her only sources of order, i.e. boundaries and affection which are the things that tell us that we matter as children, are Adrien and Jean the Butler. 

One was willing to overlook her bad behavior out of his own need for companionship and out of ignorance, as she was his only referent for typical behavior. The other, as an employee, does not have the authority to call her out but must use bribery and persuasion to influence her treatment of others. This is not only because he would be fired for upsetting the boss’s daughter if he actually disciplined her, but because ‘he’s a servant’ and _she_ doesn't take orders from _servants_ (consider how she reacts in _Catalyst_ to getting her Miraculous from Laduybug’s “second fiddle”) _._

A fairly typical pattern of children with [ overindulgent parents ](https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-age-overindulgence/201809/what-is-childhood-overindulgence) is to develop narcissistic personalities, feelings of superiority and entitlement. They are focused on fame and image, with poor sense of boundaries and responsibility. As a double whammy she is Ignored by her mother. “Children of uninvolved parents have little emotional control. They have trouble forming attachments to other people. Easily frustrated, they are more likely to have academic problems and delinquent behavior, .... teens raised by uninvolved parents are likely to be impulsive, self-centered and do not believe there will be consequences for their behavior.” [(source)](https://www.hellomotherhood.com/how-does-it-affect-children-when-their-parents-ignore-them-9678369.html)

Children need emotional safety, and Adrien and Jean are her only early sources of that. So Adrien continues to be the one person besides her mother whom she will go out of her way to try and please without prompting, and Jean is dragged into playing games as “Big Mustachio”. Again we see how this relationship is hampered by Chloé’s status focused world view. It’s only when he hides behind the treasured gift from her Father that Jean can act as a break on her behavior.

As one of the examples of character mirroring, Adrien also has this mix of emotional abandonment and overindulgence, though tempered. Gabriel is demanding, but will occasionally show signs that he cares, such as the time they played a duet, sending out search parties in the Christmas special, and at the end of _Style Queen_ when he appears in public for the first time since Emilie disappeared to give Adrien a hug _._ Even when these signs are done with the purpose to manipulate Adrian, he sees them as signs his father loves him and they are still evidence of a relationship between the two, which is more than Chloé has.

Given how both of them speak of her, Emilie was probably very present and any tendency she had to spoil Adrien would have been balanced by Gabriel's demands of performance. But she is just as guilty of keeping him locked away. 

In completely different ways Chloé’s parents fail to provide any kind of structure for her to grow into, so she stops growing emotionally at the time her mother leaves. Watch as she plays with Sabrina and “Big Mustachio” in _Antibug_. She's not a teenager here, she's a little kid. Just like whenever she interacts with Mr. Cuddly she reverts to that six year old girl. 

Her father is the Mayor, and hotelier, and her mother, a fashion critic. One of them is likely the A. Bourgeois that is credited as the producer for Emilie’s movie, _Solitude,_ that appears in _Gorizilla_. She is constantly looking to define her place in the world by the only metric they seem to recognize, “Status.” Status, in her head, is marked by who can give orders (and be rude) to whom; not necessarily popularity. As such her mom outranks her dad, as does Ladybug, Gabriel Agreste and herself. 

She latches onto playing Ladybug, not because Ladybug is good and kind but because she is the highest status girl that Chloé knows. And not grasping the concept of an equal partnership, she constantly tries to replace Chat as Ladybug's “second”.

In contrast to the bee, which symbolizes diligence and responsibility, Chloé is lazy and thoughtless, shoving her work onto Sabrina, or anyone else handy. She sees appearance as more important than substance and measures the value of things by price tag (gold toilets). The only thing that she seems to have pursued for the purpose of achieving excellence was dance (in _Frightningale_ she names as her instructor the then _Prima Balerina_ of the Paris Ballet).

Because status is her only real metric for value she honestly doesn't understand why she shouldn't say or do the mean things that she does. By her understanding of the world she hasn't done anything wrong. Of the three people best placed to help her work out a better pattern for knowing where she fits in the world by providing correction or discipline, her Father won't, Jean can’t, and Adrien is reluctant to lose his only friend. It’s notable that he is much more willing to express his frustration with her behavior when he is interacting with her as Chat. For example in _Evillustrator_ and when he goes to give her the Bee in _Catalyst_ . In both cases he is not risking his relationship with her when he doesn’t immediately give in to her demands and doesn't continue to humor her. As he gains more friends and a better understanding of proper behavior he is more and more willing to call her out as Adrien like he does in _Kung Food_.

Chloé’s life is a constant search to find someone who will tell her she is both valuable and valued. That she has worth as a person and that someone else recognizes it. She wants some way to be special that is not just an accident of birth. Especially as that seems insufficient to get her mother's attention. She needs a place to stand and the path to get out of the desert of Chaos. 

Because both of her parents are distant, she has a fear of abandonment. She glomps onto Adrien because she knows he has the status to ignore her if he wants, and is constantly pushing Sabrina in a game of emotional chicken, just to make sure she won't leave no matter how bad Chloé treats her. As the series goes on Sabrina seems to become less dependent on Chloé for her sense of belonging. 

###  Aspect of Order: The Hierarchy

[ Understanding Social Hierarchies: The Neural and Psychological Foundations of Status Perception ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5494206/)

One of the principle ways that order manifests itself both in reality and story is in Hierarchy. If there are two things one will be above the other. Awareness of hierarchy is built into some of the oldest parts of the human brain. It most obviously manifests in the typical male patterns and social structures of the Gang, whether that gang is the mafia, the military, or corporate or government bureaucracy. Competition for status in the hierarchy underlies pretty much every single Shonen battle anime, harem comedy, high school drama and regency romance. 

[ Male and female hierarchies organize slightly differently](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237101081_Female_Dominance_Hierarchies_Are_They_Any_Different_from_Males'). Males tend to organize in fairly stable, linear, pecking orders. Females typically form cliques that jockey for position as groups. For example, think of how different the team dynamics are in the Power Rangers vs.the Sailor Senshi. 

Whereas research suggests that young children tend to ascribe higher status to individuals perceived to be more dominant, adults base their judgments of others’ social status on a wide range of socially valued dimensions that may or may not be perceptually available. For example, individuals believed to be immoral or bad tend to be assigned lower status. Although what conveys social status may not always generalize across individuals and social groups, perceived differences in standing typically appear to be based on social dimensions valued by members of a given group. [(source)](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/immunology-and-microbiology/social-hierarchy)

Chloé is all about Hierarchy. 

You can see it all over her relationships and interactions and character sheet. Her last name **Bourgeois** draws attention to wealth and class as defining aspects of her character. [In France there are four levels of the bourgeoisie.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bourgeoisie#France_and_French-speaking_countries) The _haute_ (upper), _grande_ (upper middle) _moyenne (_ middle), and _petite_ ([petty](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petite_bourgeoisie)) bourgeoisie. The _haute bourgeoisie_ have been on top since the revolution. They are as close to Nobility a France has after The Terror. The _grande_ became rich in the last two or three generations. The Bourgeois family are, at best, _grande_ and likely only recently. Comparatively _Nouveau Riche_ to Mr. D'Argencourt’s pre-revolutionary, but likely now relatively poor, aristocratic background (though they are probably old money to anyone else but the Agrestes). 

Her only age mate growing up is the son of an actress in movies her family produced and a fashion designer her mother “discovered”. Both of them are probably _haute_. Gabriel is always talking about what Agrestes do or don't do (“we are soloists, not mere band members'') and in _Félix_ the argument over the Graham de Vanilly (aristocratic style name) rings implies long prominence for both families. Note also that the Agreste Manor is on the same plaza, catty-corner to Le Grand Paris hotel (see _Party Crasher_ @13:47), and takes up a whole block by itself. It’s either old or the Agrestes are even richer than Chloé’s family. Since the car in _Reflekdoll_ has a licence plate that indicates the Agreste Corporate Fleet has at least 75 cars. It may just be by a little bit, but Adrien is a step higher on the status ladder. It’s a large part of why she tries to claim him as her boyfriend. Females in fairy tales, as a rule, tend to marry UP (Cinderella type stories). We can see this status game play out in their conversation about music in Guitar Villain. Chloé assumes that Adrian must like XY, who is noted as the _best selling_ musician. Popular equals good in her value system. But she quickly aligned with Adrien’s stated preference because his opinion is the more salient to her. 

By rights Chloé ought to be the social Queen Bee at Françoise Dupont (See _Queen Bees and Wannabes_ by Rosalind Wiseman). She is pretty, fashionable, rich and the daughter of the Mayor. She should be highly successful as the proto-typical “Mean Girl”.

Except for one problem: she doesn't know how to shut it off. Except in the case of Sabrina, who is in desperate need of a boss, Chloé either has no carrots or doesn't know how to wield them. She is all stick. She almost never calls anyone by their name and it's usually their last name and in derision. She is only class president through blackmail and intimidation. She doesn't even think to try bribery, except with Sabrina, until after Marinette challenges her. The only time she throws a party at the hotel is under the combined pressure of Adrien and Mister Cuddly. She fails to use her status for the benefit of her social circle and as a consequence barely has one. 

Most of her classmates she just ignores or casually insults, but Marinette she actively dislikes and attacks personally on a regular basis. Mari's invitation to the _Despair Bear_ party is late because it takes special convincing. Even before receiving the Miraculous and getting the confidence boost, Marinette is a natural leader in the classroom. Note that at the start of _Malediktator_ everyone in the class is laughing except Marinette and Adrien but it's Marinette’s sotto voice comment that catches Chloé’s attention, and as soon as it does there is an immediate fight between the two.

In _Stoneheart_ we see Ivan actually take her advice with little argument, as does Kim in _Dark Cupid_ . The girl posse in _Gigantitan_ is obviously used to listening to her wild plans, if not executing them. She is Producer for the film in _Horrificator_ and Manager for Kitty Section in _Silencer_. Chloé’s constant criticism may have exacerbated her natural anxiety, but when she forgets herself and leads, people follow. Chloé puts more effort into putting down Marinette because she recognizes Mari as her natural rival for the top of the school social hierarchy. Lila, who is a level 20 mean girl, and infinitely better at the game than either of them, does too. 

In Shakespeare's _Hamlet_ there is a line given by the mad Ophelia where she says, "They say the owl was a baker's daughter. Lord! we know what we are, but know not what we may be" (4.5.46-48). In British Folk Tales by Kevin Crossley-Holland, there on page 331 was " [ The Baker's Daughter ](http://fairytalefailure.blogspot.com/2009/09/bakers-daughter.html)". One of the "good people" (a fairy) masquerades as a beggar woman and goes to a baker's shop who is a known miser. His daughter is even worse. She sneers at the poor and is a sycophant to the rich. Three times the disguised woman begs for just a small piece of dough, and each time the daughter puts a smaller and smaller crumb of dough in the oven. But the smaller the crumb is the bigger the loaf becomes as it bakes in the oven. The daughter refuses each time to give the large loaf to the woman. The third and last time this happens, the daughter is so dumb-founded that all she can say is "who... who..." So the woman says that "whoo-whoo" is all the girl will ever say again and turns her into an owl as punishment for her treatment of the poor.

Chloé is always dissing Marinette for being a “baker's daughter”. Not only does this have an ironic echo for this story, because she is the one with the sneering and ass kissing personality. But it is a way to reinforce the difference in their socioeconomic status. To put Marinette in her place. Their conversation at the end of _Animestro_ is a prime example. It might work if Marinette cared about status the same way she does.

I know a lot of people think that _Stormy Weather 2_ was a waste of an episode but I think it was really important. Throughout the whole episode people are thinking about change and stability and Chloé starts it off with declaring that “once a villain always a villain” which calls back to what she says about Ivan (“once a monster always a monster” ) in the second _Origins_ episode. 

The writers were warning the fans right then that Chloé **has not changed**. She doesn't want to. She just wants to maintain her place in the order of her life. We see this in the end of _Despair Bear_ , right after the pinky swear with Adrien which reestablishes (in her mind) her place in the hierarchy; she goes right back to being dismissive and insulting. The only “nice” thing she actually enjoyed doing was helping defeat Despair Bear. It sets her default understanding of being good == defeating villains. It helped her feel powerful and in control and brought recognition from people who matter. She focuses on emulating that part of Ladybug, not the kindness and consideration part. She still disses Sabrina's cookies at the Hero’s Day picnic and brags about her diamond jewel case in _Malediktator_. Nice is how people on the bottom act toward those who are on top. And Chloé is _supposed_ to be at the top. On top of that their shared contempt for other people has _finally_ helped her make a connection with her mother. There is no way she is going to give that up without a fight.

Because she wants to be recognized, keeping her identity a secret never occurs to her. If it's a secret then no one would know it was her. That knowledge of who she is lets her give grownups orders in _Startrain_ . Orders that they obey, and they obey because it’s **her** this time not because of her father. Being Queen Bee has made her a somebody in her own right and not just an appendage to her parents. 

A lot of people think her statement in _Miraculer_ that “Sabrina is my friend, not Miraculer” is a sign of real progres. But the operative word in that sentence is **not** friend, it's **MY** . Chloé wants the old order back. If they were really making progress towards an equal friendship, Chloé wouldn’t have arranged to sit _by herself_ in first class in _Startrain_ . Chloé turns down Mayura’s offer in _Miraculer_ because she already thinks she has an established spot. It's not the absolute top but it’s enough. The most important person in Paris thinks she matters. When at the end of the episode Ladybug takes that place away, she tears up her Ladybug/Queen Bee selfie and turns onto the road that leads to _Miracle Queen_. 

At the end of _Miracle Queen_ we see her abandoned by Hawkmoth and Ladybug, dismissed by the kwami and now ignored by _both_ her parents. She‘s down to Sabrina and maybe Adrien as the only people, whose opinion she cares about, who see her as having any value. She has almost nothing left to lose. Worse she has serious blackmail now. She knows the identities of other wielders and has no reason to keep that secret and no history of restraint. 

Chloé is a loose cannon growing looser. She can either hit rock bottom and start up or find a jackhammer and start digging, but it's only now that she has the chance and motivation for real character growth. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title from the Trope [The Woman Wearing The Queenly Mask](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask) though shes mostly just an [ Alpha Bitch](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AlphaBitch) or tries to be anyway. For a break down of how I go about developing a characterstudy see [this post](https://miraculousfanworks.tumblr.com/post/628094568141897728/how-to-analyze-a-character) at the Miraculous Fanworks Tumbler.
> 
> As always, my great gratitude to my Betas [Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs), [Keyseeker](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Keyseeker), [Itookyourpen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Itookyourpen/pseuds/Itookyourpen) who read both the introduction and this chapter. Continued props to all of the Fabulous people at the [Miraculous Fanworks Discord](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) whose enthusiasm for MLB and writing keep me going.


	3. Love is a Many Splendored Thing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Swing your partner do-si-do.
> 
> Lots of ink has been spilled on the Love-square. Chasing our favorite dorks in love around the corners of the love square has occupied the fandom for literally years. As the central set of relationships in the story everything hangs off of who they are and what they represent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Given that this is probably the central chapter in this series this took a long time to put together.  
> A lot of ground gets covered and if something doesn't make sense, or you think I'm of base, or just full of it, please leave a comment. 
> 
> This is supposed to be a jumping off place not the last word.
> 
> I know that Chapter Two on Chloe has helped at least three awesome writers whose work I admire with their writing so I would love to hear if this helps you too.

### Symbolism up the Yin-Yang

All of the symbolism and commentary in the show is set up to play Marinette/Ladybug and Adrien/Chat Noir, in both their superhero and civilian identities, as a complementary pair. We see this in the opening credits. It's shown in the structure of the Miracle Box, which stores the Black Cat and Ladybug Miraculouses in the symbol of the Dao, as previously mentioned (ch1), and the love square which is shown in the quick pass of Chat jumping at Ladybug, who switches to Marinette pining after Adrien. 

It has been observed that if you take the negative of the image of them standing at the wall in the sewer in _Catalyst_ , they [ look like a palette swapped image ](https://www.picuki.com/media/2302296848327966442) . Master Fu and Wayzz at the end of the second _Origins_ episode remark on how the two are ‘made for each other’. We have even been told that Adrienette is the planned endgame. 

In this essay I want to take a look at what exactly this means.

### The Cat Who Walks by Himself

I want to start with Adrien because his character seems to be simple. As Adrien he is, at first blush, shy, sad and self deprecating. He is deliberately modeled to be [ like Snow White ](https://twitter.com/Thomas_Astruc/status/719832704628469760) , he also resonates with Rapunzel stuck in his tower in need of rescue, especially the Tangled version. All of his choices have been made for him, he wears the clothes his father makes and studies the subjects his father picks (Chinese, fencing). He has no agency and therefore appears and for a while _is_ harmless. This restriction is, putatively, to keep him safe. 

But you can't keep someone safe forever. The best you can do is make them competent enough to confront danger when it comes.The Miraculous comes along and all of a sudden he can choose for the first time. He can leave whenever he wants! He is giddy with excitement, rash, impulsive and uncontrolled, frequently leaping before he looks. Showing his lack of practice at decision making. But no matter how often he fails he will choose freedom. We see his greatest fear in _Sandboy_ is a prison with ever shrinking walls. As Adrien he is often shown with [images that evoke prison.](https://flightfoot.tumblr.com/post/188191776572/xxxdreamingflowerxxx-nkvictory-luanna255) The windows of his room appear like bars of a cell and frequently cast shadows that evoke the same image. As Chat he has frequently been put in chains ( _Copycat_ ) or bound in ropes _(Anti-Bug) ,_ and just as often turned his cataclysm on those same symbols of bondage. Early Golden age Wonder Woman was similarly portrayed as both literally and figuratively breaking chains of oppression.

Adrien shows aspects of the two faced God: Life and Death. We call him Sunshine for good reason. He is Apollo, the most beautiful of the Gods. God of the Sun, music, poetry _, and beardless athletic youth_ and their education _._ In _Gorizilla_ the image of him in the fragrance ads is all in white. He is angelic and innocent. Something above mere mortals. But boyish and non-threatening as well..

But this is a mask. Whenever Adrien is alone with Plagg he becomes a little sharper, a little more angry and cynical. Quick to complain. Not above bribery (Plagg) or the occasional threat (Lila in _Chameleon_ ). The mask is most present when he is with his father. He is a little less reserved facing down Nathalie to go to school. Ironically his name Adrien, [ a French variant of Adrian which means Dark One ](https://www.babynamespedia.com/meaning/Adrian/m) , and Agreste is both French and Italian for rustic/or wild, is more suitable for his transformed persona. The scion of a great French fashion house hiding as a foreign country bumpkin. It is also the French name of the [ greyling butterfly ](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agreste).

As Chat Noir he is darker and earthier, and not just sartorially. He wields the power of Destruction, chaos that springs from stifling order. He's also more sexual than Adrien, flirting shamelessly and leering, tom catting (tom kittening? This is a kids show after all ;-)) and strutting. His name also nods at the early and famous Parisian cabaret, Le Chat Noir. We know this is not accidental because the first time we see Wayzz, in _Origins_ , he is [ sleeping in a match box from the club ](https://aminoapps.com/c/miraculous/page/blog/wayzz-sleeps-in-chat-noir/xez8_WxC2ue2QkBNWYpKJD2ppG3n8mJ2a) . The delightfully sexy Batman villain Catwoman is also [ an explicit source ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrien_Agreste#cite_note-Nolife-2). 

But his lady killer persona always feels a little off. Ladybug thinks it’s a joke right up until _Glaciator_ and she sees, as Marinette, the trouble he went to to prepare a romantic evening. Then afterwards when she confesses that she can’t return his feelings because she is already in love she blushes at the sincere, quiet gift of a rose. 

It's understandable that she would miss the sincerity. Chat is a show of flexing and doing tricks for Marinette _and_ Ladybug. Making ludicrous jokes and lame puns and generally exploring sides of himself that he keeps hidden as Adrien. It’s a persona he has built out of what he imagines a smooth and debonair ladies’ man to be. Based on his instagram, probably built on Anime lady killers. [It has been observed](https://flightfoot.tumblr.com/post/188191776572/xxxdreamingflowerxxx-nkvictory-luanna255) that Gabriel's response to Adrien being upset in _Simon Says/Jackady_ is very much the "stop being Hysterical ." Put down of women being angry and that Adrien has been socialized with the same "shut up, don't complain, be nice, look pretty" script that is frequently forced on women and girls. Think specifically of how difficult he finds telling Lila and Chloe that he doesn't appreciate their attentions. This failure to teach Adrien both proper expressions of masculinity and just general self assertion is a form of emotional foot-binding (Thanks Talik) that keeps him dependent. 

I mentioned in the introduction that mythical order and hierarchy are frequently coded in male symbols. This is not because of any greater inherent order in males but because ordered masculinity is necessary for civilization to function. The California, Yukon and to a lesser degree New Mexico Gold rushes are famous for their violence. [ The one that happened in North Carolina ](https://www.ncpedia.org/anchor/north-carolina-gold-rush) barely 50 years earlier is almost unknown outside the state. This was, in part, because unlike the other goldfields, which were nearly exclusively filled with unattached young men, the North Carolina goldfields were leavened by experts brought in from the tin and zinc mines of Cornwall. Men which came with their faith (Methodist) and their families. 

Consider also the link between[ Fatherless homes and gang violence ](https://www.mnpsych.org/index.php%3Foption%3Dcom_dailyplanetblog%26view%3Dentry%26category%3Dindustry%2520news%26id%3D54) . The lack of loving male parental influence seed [ rootlessness that leads many to seek alternative families in the Gangs](https://people.missouristate.edu/michaelcarlie/what_I_learned_about/gangs/whyform/family.htm). Feelings of male parental abandonment make connection difficult. Children of father absent homes are often full of anger as well as hypervigilant and prone to interpret neutral stimuli as angry. They often have trouble forming friendships and romantic attachments. Of the caregivers in Adrien’s life, Gabriel has always been distant and has become more so. His mother seems to be fondly remembered by him and was likely very involved. But we haven't really seen an independent view of her behavior and she doesn't seem to have objected to his being locked away with only Chloé for a friend. Nathalie is obviously very protective, to witness her defence of Adrien in _Felix,_ but her interactions with him are mostly cooly professional and she doesn't protest Gabriel's mistreatment. His most positive current adult relationship in the household is the Gorilla, and their interaction is at best limited. 

Now look at Adrien’s behavior through this lens. That Chat Noir is not just becoming a hero, but joining a gang, finding a new family and learning to express his masculinity. Ernest Thomas Seaton one of the founders of the American Scouting Movement called the gang, “the natural organization of boys.” Peter Pan and his Lost Boys are a prime literary example. Adrien is tempered in how he expresses himself in part because Ladybug is his guiding star and because the home away from home he has found is with Alya and Nino and the other friends from their class. But he is still running around Paris in a leather catsuit with the power to _break things,_ and solving problems by hitting them with a stick _._

With the loss of his mother Adrien has begun to rebel to push his boundaries, it's a sunshiny rebellion, as fits his personality, one that calls to my mind Shazam, a DC hero from the Golden age of Comics. The young man granted the power to become Shazam was chosen because despite his life as an orphan he never lost his cheerful nature and optimistic attitude. Adrien is also generally cheerful and happy. His great acts of defiance are running away _to school_ , and Liberty, and to be a superhero. 

He is not without a darker side though. It peeks through in _Copycat_ when he shoots down the sculptor, Théo Barbot, and at the end of _Ladybug_ when he threatens Lila. His harsh words when mind controlled in _Dark Cupid,_ wondering what happens if he Cataclysms a person, didn’t come from nowhere. In _Weredad_ he gives an eloquent articulation to his frustration. Railing against the sterile safety of a gilded cage, with no company but yourself. Chat lets him express his id; jealousy, lust, anger, all those things he “can’t” feel when he is being Adrien. They are small still but grow and we see him being more expressive in both guises over the course of the show. 

### Luck Be a Ladybug Tonight

Marinette, as Ladybug, represents the power of Creation, which manifests itself in the Lucky Charm that she calls on to solve the problems presented by the episodic akuma. She also demonstrates this creative power in the solutions she arrives at and the creation that she does as Marinette. Thus far we have seen her design clothing, hats, glasses, album cover art, costumes and the video for Kitty Section’s contest submission. She makes scarves, bread, special passion fruit macarons, schedules, banners, and overly complicated plans. It is important to recognize that creation was anciently a term for organizing that which is unformed into something useful, setting up the structure of the governing of the world. [ There is no Ex Nihilo, ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ex_nihilo) in the [ earliest creation myths ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_creation_myths) . All things are first drawn up out of the primeval waters of chaos, (the Egyptians have a mound (pyramid) of clay, the isles of Japan are drops of water from a spear), or come from a great egg (Greek, Roman, Japanese, again Taoist), or is birthed by one of the gods, or is the gods. The Void of Genesis is not nothingness but purposelessness, [ the emptiness of the trackless desert or depth of the forbidding sea. ](https://www.publicchristianity.org/the-lost-world-of-genesis/)Things are made to DO, not just to be.

This is important because what Marinette primarily does is not make something out of nothing but organize what is already there, for the purpose of solving some problem. Creation is primarily the process of ordering what is disordered to a useful end, whether that is the solution for an akuma, ingredients for a recipe, or frends into a romantic strike team.

Marinette expresses at various times all three aspects of the triple goddess. In her youth and awkward pursuit of Adrien she is the maiden; innocent, inexperienced, virginal. Clumsy as many adolescents are when their development of their bodies happens faster than they can keep up with it. She takes the Crone’s office when she pronounces judgement on Hawk Moth ( _Origins)_ , and Chloé ( _Miracle Queen_ ) and every time she takes back the gift of a Miraculous. Her akumatized name in _Catalyst_ is Princess Justice. But for all her youth her prime symbology is maternal. 

In [Egyptian myth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insects_in_religion) the scarab is the symbol of rebirth and the dawn. Amulets in Scarab form were gifted at birth, carried through life, used to record marriages and accompany the dead. The ladybug is considered good luck in Europe and China (in the latter case especially for those seeking to adopt). Alternate name for ladybugs in Europe is ‘God’s horse’ or _Mary’s horse._ Mary in this case being [Mary Mother of Jesus,](https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/word-history-ladybug-christianity) [_Theotokos_](http://www.margaretbarker.com/Publications/MotherOfTheLord.htm)or [‘God Bearer’](https://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Mother-Lord-Volume-Temple/dp/0567528154/). Marinette, significantly, means “Little Mary'' and her passion for fashion resonates with the story that Mary was, for a time during her pregnancy, a weaver in the Jerusalem temple. Simultaneously creating the mortal tabernacle of the Divine and weaving the Temple Veil that symbolically represents the physical body that clothes the spirit. Clothes are often a symbol of the body.

We often see her offering comfort, advice, food. She armors Kitty Section for their participation in Bob Roth’s false tournament and as the distributor of the less powerful Miraculous she acts as [ Throne Goddess ](https://isiopolis.com/2013/12/14/what-is-isis-connection-with-the-throne/) distributing favor and power among her chosen. She is Isis, (Greek meaning throne), or _Iset_ , (Egyption which also means place), She is the Great Mother, Mother Earth, Mother of Horus and Wife to Osiris, King of the living and the dead. It is not accidental that the Miracle Box becomes an _egg_ in her care. 

Going back to the image of the Miracle Box we see that the Ladybug Miraculous rests in the Yin portion of the Dao. As the white spot of yang in the darkness of the yin this is a recognition that creation is the process of bringing Order (Yang) out of Chaos (Yin). 

While Adrien‘s life is clearly bifurcated between his two haves. The balance between order and chaos is less clear in Marinette's life. This is shown in their costumes. He is a solid black and she wears spots. Chaos manifests in Marinette in her clumsiness, mood swings and anxiety. Despite her very loving and supportive parents she has a tendency to catastrophize, running every worst case scenario out to the most extreme conclusion.

It also manifests in the way she sabotages herself when trying to confess. In _Félix_ we hear her worry not just about Adrien telling her “he doesn't love [her]”, but also telling her he does. It's easy to have a pretend relationship with an imaginary person. They don't get irritated at your bad habits or take their bad day out on you or have annoying quirks that you can't stand. As she notes, as long as she is not trying to confess she is fine talking to Adrien or if she thinks that she is just pretending, as in _Puppeteer 2_ , it’s only when she tries to move the relationship deeper that she falls apart.

As long as her relationship with Adrien remains unrealized potential it’s entirely under her control and safe. As soon as it becomes real it's out of her control and her heart becomes a hostage to the other person's moods. Moods she cannot control and consequently cannot trust. In her own way Marinette is as much of a control freak as Gabriel is. She is just so uncoordinated as Marinette that her “control” largely fails. And her natural empathy leads her to abandon her plans if they hurt others or in order to help, just like she did helping August and his mother up the stairs in _Gigantian_. 

To combat the disorder that seems to spring out of her, we see her constantly attempting to put the rest of the world in order , to fix every broken thing and heal every wound. From trying to clean up the Liberty and the schedule in her bedroom, to the weekly macaron she makes for Adrien, Marinette is constantly fighting the entropy of existence.

### The Dynamic Duo

When Master Fu selects Marinette and Adrien to bear the Miraculous he sets them each a little test. It's easy to assume that it's just whether they will stop to help an old man. But that's only the first part of the test, ‘Are they observant and willing to go out of their way to help’. The second part is of course the element of risk in their rescues. Fairly obvious risk of physical harm in Marinette’s case. Adrien has the less obvious risk of losing the opportunity to go to school that he was working so hard for. It’s a risk that is actually realized. Whether or not Master Fu was watching long enough to know this is an open question). There is a third layer that most people don’t ever notice. Both of them respond to loss without taking it out on the cause of their misfortune. Marinette loses the macarons, planed bribe for a good impression on her classmates, yet she still offers one of the few remaining to Master Fu. Adrien is sad for losing the opportunity for his first day of school but he never expressed any regret for helping. Even at their lowest points, Chat in _Syren,_ Marinette in _Gamer 2.0_ and _Heart Hunter,_ they don't resent the people they serve, even if they despair at the burden they bear.

As a team, Ladybug leads. This does not make Chat lesser, but it is something we are not used to seeing expressed this way in fiction. Though there is always the ancient joke about how the man might be the head of the family but the woman is the neck and can turn the head any way she pleases. Chat’s job is to “break things”, a much simpler and more straightforward task than putting them back together. He just has to pick the right thing to break 

> I can’t believe so many people have a problem with a girl being the leader of a duo. Ladybug isn’t the boss, the chief, the captain or the superior of Cat Noir. They’re equal. But she leads because of her abilities. Is it so difficult to let girls lead?- [ Thomas Astruc (@Thomas_Astruc) June 17, 2020 ](https://twitter.com/Thomas_Astruc/status/1273397253483479040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

Despite the impression given by her hesitancy in love and other heroics, Marinette is a naturally proactive person. No matter how bad Chloé’s teased her she can’t stop trying to help even at the beginning in _Stoneheart_.

As a designer she is used to making plans and executing them. Adrien by contrast has very little experience with decision making, and tends to act impulsively and thoughtlessly and follow someone else's instructions by habit. It's a habit he only thinks to break when he is upset with the person giving instructions. 

While they are both playful in their heroing, Marinette takes it just enough more seriously than Adrien to get a fanon portrayal as all business. From the very first moment we see them he acts from the heart, she from the head. Adrien leaps at the call to adventure, Marinette must be cajoled, convinced and ultimately given a reason outside herself to charge into the fray. This makes sense as she has a good life and happy home, and the only real flies in her ointment are Lila and Chloé and a tendency to over schedule herself. Adrien is desperately trying to get out of his life and the mask only brings him closer to the one he loves. Of course Marinette’s does too but she doesn't know that.

Marinette confuses the freakin' hell out of Adrien. She jumps between relaxed and confident to total spaz with no predictable pattern from his point of view. Anansi is basically a double date and she is completely chill the whole time. As she is most of the time when something else is happening that pushes paying attention to him down the priority que a couple of slots. She has denied that she has romantic feelings for him to his face the two times he has asked her point blank, and then "confessed" to his alter ego. He knows that because he hasn't had a lot of experience in dealing with other people that he is could be misinterpreted people's actions and he is trusting his "Good Friend" to be honest with him. On top of this his calibration for normal levels of physicality between "just friends" has been set by Chloé hanging off of him, so even the kiss on Hero's day doesn't stand out enough. Because he has lost his mother and knows how fleeting the chance to tell someone you love them can be he is quick to state his feelings. Marinette is secure in the love of her parents, but has seen the damage words spoken in haste can do in the rupture between her dad and Grandfather. She chokes on the mass of consequences she can see coming from her confession. Part of Marinette's problem is that the intensity of her own feelings freaks her out whenever she takes a good look at them.

Adrien needs everyone to stop hinting and waiting for him to get a clue and just straight up tell him "Marinette _likes_ YOU, with the white hot fury of a thousand suns. She wants your babies like she wants air. Say the word and she will push you down and have you right here on your desk in front of God and everybody, until you begged for mercy twice." But they don't do this because none of them have realized the implications of his isolated upbringing beyond a significant deficit in vitamin P( a r t y). Marinette needs to know that there are options between "Yes let's cal the priest," and "never darken my doorway ever again."

### Matchmaker, Matchmaker

Because of the structure of the relationship, the infamous “Love Square'' which has Marinette chasing Adrien who flirts with Ladybug who blushes when Adrien walks by, and round and round and round, a discussion of why people fall for other people is in order. Note: this is a general case dealing only with the biological and mythic classes of _male_ and _female._ Those are the ones the old stories (myth, legend, fairytale) care about, because what they care about is getting the next generation ready to make sure there is a generation after that. (I am not qualified to comment on how this translates into the LGBTQ community and I’m not going to try. If _you_ are and desire to enlighten the rest of us, be my guest.) 

####  **I’m the King of the World.**

* * *

Picking a worthy mate is HARD, and one of the best ways humans have found to solve hard problems is to outsource it. This shows up in the fact that one of the documented things that makes men more attractive to women is being in a relationship. A phenomenon called “[mate copying](https://www.discovermagazine.com/mind/evolution-could-explain-why-having-a-girlfriend-makes-men-more-attractive)” means that people tend to assume that a person picked by someone else must be worth picking. I can testify it happens. I went from being a nerdy, dorky also-ran in my college singles congregation to “the one that got away” immediately upon announcing my engagement to the girl I brought to church from the anime club.

The other group that the problem gets shifted to is the males themselves. Females pursuing a long term mating strategy (House, three kids, hamster) let the boys fight it out and then pick from the top of whatever hierarchy results as long as it gets them material resources and stable social position. 

Adrien is at the top of several rankings and [ would be a catch ](https://www.sciencealert.com/how-to-appear-more-attractive-to-woman-according-to-science-tips) even if he wasn't the most sweet and lovable cinnamon roll ever. Add the bad boy side that comes out when he is being Chat and it’s no wonder he has girls dripping off him.

**Lady in Red**

* * *

I have seen remarks that the show is anti-feminist because it has four girls competing for our most eligible Bachelor, Adrien Agreste. I think this is silly as we have also had four different guys attempt to woo Marinette (Nino, Nathaniel, Luka, Chat) five if you count Adrien twice for both sides and six if you consider Félix. It was an eww attempt, but attempt it was. I also consider Nathaniel’s attempt as _Evilistrator_ pretty eww as it had all of the hallmarks of the entitled “nice guy”. 

Marinette has all of the traditional virtues: kindness, generosity, beauty. She can cook, clean and sew. On top of that she is fierce in defense of her friends and easily one of the smartest characters in the show. 

Keeping smart women around is an evolutionary good, hence menopause. My mother once observed that you can tell Shakespeare's tragedies from his comedies by the presence of smart, competent women. In the Tragedies they are either missing (Romeo and Juliet, Othello) or corrupt (MacBeth). 

The thing that puts Adrien over the top for Marinette, in her guise as Ladybug, is the speech she gives in _Stoneheart (Origins 2)_ where she calls out an arrogant, entitled, older man making unreasonable demands for his blame shifting and emotionally manipulative attacks on helpless people, both the akumatized and the people they hurt as collateral damage. Basically she tells the manifestations of all the worst parts of his father where he can put his demands. Of course he loves her.

Both of the characters are at the pinnacle of desirability and it's no wonder that they fall for each other and that others fall for them.

The square itself maps four different kinds of relationships. Ladrien has both characters faced with their ideal person. The mate against which all other contenders are measured. They each have put the other on a pedestal high out of reach beyond their ability to touch. Adrien, especially, desires that Ladybug returns his affections because he gets so little from his father. He wants to know that the person he finds most worthy of admiration judges him worthy as well, and staring into the sun that is Ladybug is part of what blinds him to Marinette.

Marichat shows both of them dealing with their best friend, someone they can be themself with without the pressure to perform. They get silly and teasy and make fun ( _Evilistrator_ ), but also open up and share their deepest vulnerabilities and hurts ( _Glacieator_ ). LadyNoir is a solid working relationship steady and strong even with Chat’s pining. They know each other and trust runs sure and deep enough for real honesty. This is part of why Chat resents being kept out of the loop in Syren so much and why Marinette keeps asking Fu if she can tell him. 

Adrienette is the first blush of young love, both of them are unsure that the person they are is worthy or desirable. Marinette because of both her verbal and physical clumsiness, especially Around Adrien. Adrien because he's not sure if it's him or the billboard image of him that people are responding too. Ironically this relationship is the one where their masks are thickest, neither sure exactly who the other is and both are trying to put their best face towards the world. 

### That Old Black Magic (The Love Hex)

It seemed bad enough when it was just Marinette|Ladybug, and Adrien|Chat Noir chasing their tails around Paris but then they had to go add two whole other people. Both of these alternative arrangements look like what would be if the hidden parts of the love square for Marinette and Adrien were chopped off. 

####  **Mirror, Mirror on the Wall**

* * *

Nowhere is the mirroring motif made more explicit than with Kagami Tsurugi . Her name is literally ‘mirror’ and references the [ Yata no Kagami ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yata_no_Kagami) (八咫鏡). One third of the Japanese imperial regalia. It represents Wisdom and reflection. Her last name references the [ Kusanagi no Tsurugi ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kusanagi_no_Tsurugi) (草薙劍) _Heavenly Sword of Gathering Clouds_ or _Grass-Cutting Sword_ , also part of the regalia and representing valor and bravery. The only thing missing is the jewel or magetama which symbolizes benevolence or generosity. She cuts to the heart of matters but often has no mercy.

The Eastern dragon is a creature of water not fire, specifically the waters of Chaos like [Tiamat](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiamat) of the Babylonian creation. Eastern dragons (in Chinese _lóng_ ) They are benevolent guardians and protectors, sources of prosperity and good fortune. When angered they are fearsome, causing flooding and [“dragon twisting wind” or tornadoes](http://blog.tutorming.com/expats/chinese-dragon-western-difference-lucky). The Grass-Cutting Sword has the power to slice with a gust of air. It was found originally in the fourth tail of the eight headed serpent [_Yamata no Orochi_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamata_no_Orochi) which had stolen seven of the eight daughters of the local land-god by the Divine Hero Susanoo, impetuous and impatient wild god of storms and pestilence, husband of the Rice Goddess Kushi-nada-hime and brother to Amaterasu, Goddess of the Sun. 

Word of God is that she is to reflect both Adrien and Marinette. We first meet her as she is seeking a worthy opponent at the fencing academy where Adrien trains. They are evenly matched in both skill and passion. Their initial duel ranges all over the school and if you can pick who got the first touch at the end you have better eyes than me, or really good video editing software. Kagami explicitly states they are ‘alike’ with similar strict parents both of whom travel in the highest social and business circles. Just like Adrien she jumps into being a hero without waiting to hear the full explanation and just like Marinette in the beginning she is quick to judge herself a failure. The progression of the relationship between Adrien and Kagami in _Riposte_ follows the same pattern as Marinette and Adrien in _Stoneheart_. Initial antagonism on the girls part followed by Adrien expressing his admiration and giving the girl a pointy object (umbrella and saber). Causing her to reevaluate her feelings. Throughout the episode she has seen Adrien demonstrates the virtues of the Imperial Regalia, Valor in Battle, Wisdom in his analysis of Marinette's actions and Benevolence is his offering of a second chance to join the team.

Kagami takes what Adriean finds attractive in Ladybug/Marinette and punches it up to eleven. She is fully Japanese not a hafuu thus more foreign and exotic, she is much more prominently freckled and brimming with the confidence that Adrian loves in Ladybug. She's even dressed in solid (not spotted) red in her first appearance. Her intelligence is amply demonstrated in Ikari Gozen as she solves the puzzles even with Marinette’s interference. While she is not sure how to make friends, the uniform she wears makes it possible that unlike Adrien, she has at least been to school before this and has not been so tightly sequestered as he has been. 

But she is desperately running ahead trying to escape her stifling life. She has been pushed by her mother to excel in the family tradition and probably fulfill whatever dreams were cut short by Tomoe’s blindness. Kagami only appears to be the “Ice Queen”, as Marinette calls her in _Frozier_ , on the surface. In truth she is a ball of chaos, full of barely controlled anger. Lightning in a school girl's uniform. Desperate to move on to the next achievement, the next adventure, the next conquest. She and Adrien have barely begun to know each other, and themselves, but she wants him to choose. 

She strikes at his weak point when she calls his indecision hurtful. Odd as it may seem, but she is a seductress, ready and willing to be more than “just friends”. One wonders if her move in for the kiss in Miracle Queen reminds Adrien a little bit of Lila. He is more accepting because he actually likes Kagami but she is still setting a pace that he is uncomfortable with. Possible another example of Adrien manifesting a typically female role and characterisation. 

Although it is not stated, her mother's admiration for the female Samurai, Tomoe Gozen (lit. ‘Warrior’) who fought to be recognized as a powerful woman in a male dominated field, and her warning of the disappointment in friendship points toward her father being gone. 

Ironically, immediately after extolling the virtues of someone who persevered against others putting limits on her actions Tomoe berates Kagami for doing something without her permission. Tomoe puts a lot of pressure on Kagami to succeed in the same arenas she has been denied by her blindness, and Kagami has been taught that there is no such thing as a second chance (what this means for a relationship with Luka, master of the Second Chance has not been explored). Second place is first loser. She is either perfect or nothing. Each time in _Ikari Gozen_ that she fails in combat with her mother, first in sparring then as Ryuuko, she dems herself unworthy, not unskilled. This may be a big feeder of her reaction to the picture that Lila sends out in Oni-chan. Not only has an unknown rival stolen a march on her, but it’s one she doesn't know and so can't confront. It's another loss, another way she has proven unworthy of her mother's regard. 

She is also manifesting the dragon's protective aspect. Adrien is obviously uncomfortable with Lila’s attention. Hawk Moth takes advantage of both Kagami’s anger and her protectiveness to create Oni-Chan. The name references both the Japanese ogre or _Oni_ but also the familiar form for big brother, a typically protective character in anime and manga. In this same episode she expresses that, just like Marinette, she sees Adrien as "Perfect," (possibly because she sees him manifest the virtues of valor, wisdom and benevolence she is so significantly tied too) and accuses Lila of being "unworthy of [his] affection". 

Like many young women with absent fathers, Lila and Chloé come to mind (André Bourgeois may be physically present but he is more a sugar daddy than a parent), Kagami seems more ready to move to a more physical stage in their relationship. She is the one that initiates the attempts at kissing. Notice though, that both times she moves in for a kiss, once each in _Hearthunter_ and _Miracle Queen,_ she does so slowly enough that Adrien can decide how he is going to respond (and Ladybug can snatch her before it happens the first time). Kagami is willing to let him choose, but she wants him to _make a decision_ , either for her or for Marinette, and move on. No hesitation, no regrets. As much as she enjoys their escapes, first to the Liberty in _Desperada_ then through town in _Hearthunter_ , I predict season four will have her pulling Adrien into more and more reckless behavior in their civilian identities. 

####  **Lyre, Lyre**

* * *

Luka Couffaine is a very interesting character, if quiet. A lot of people think his characterization is thin but I think there is more development than is recognized.

The first time we see him, he is holding a guitar pick, seated in a half lotus on his bed, very obviously meditating. We’ve just seen Anarka (there's a loaded name) scatter the things Marinette had just gathered up. The upper deck is a complete mess making a stark contrast with Luka’s cabin (shared with his sister), which is not just orderly, it's spare. There is his bed, a wall plaque with guitar picks in neat rows, a couple of amps and guitars and their desk. The desk holds a lamp, laptop, a doll and models with paints. Luka is framed as an ascetic. The Tatami mats by his bed are a subtle call to that as well. 

HIs almost extreme orderly nature is an almost immediate contrast to his mother Anarka’s previous insistence on disorder. But as Larery Niven said[ _“_ _Anarchy is the least stable of social structures. It falls apart at a touch.”_ ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niven%27s_laws#Niven's_Laws_\(from_Known_Space\)) Things can go anywhere, except iron near the compass. And Marinette is not allowed to clean up. Anarka’s chaos is only chaos on her terms. It's just a different shape of order. As Captain Hardrock she is just as quick as any other Akuma to force the world to conform to her standards. She shows the lie of the revolutionary that preaches freedom but mostly means “I should be the one calling the shots.” Anyone who has worked a boat before knows, things not in their place are deadly in the storm and trouble when on the move. The Liberty looks fun but just like the Isle of Pleasure in _Pinochio_ it is an illusion of freedom. Ankara wants no co-captain. 

Luka’s serpent imagery starts well before he starts being Viperion. He wears multiple layers like a serpent’ s skin. You can see an echo of the cobra's hood in the flare of his hair and the viper looks through the yellow of his upturned [ tsurime eyes ](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TsurimeEyes). His last name, Couffaine, looks and sounds like ‘coffin’ and with the terminal a of Luka it is "acouphène", the French for tinnitus, the ringing in the ear that often comes with hearing damage. Appropriate for a family for whom “too loud” is not an intelligible concept. His first name though is more interesting. Luka is a form of Luke one of the Gospel writers and in romance languages sounds like the Latin for light, Lux (pronounced lucs), as in Lucifer the light bringer, the old serpent in the garden. Thus the ‘broody goth’ mirrors Adrien, who is a golden boy named ‘darkness’ and honestly, more broody.

When Luka becomes Silencer he manifests bothe the protective and the vengeful serpent. Thirsting for justice for his wronged love, poised to meet out retribution, holding his hands in the pose of a snake style kung fu practitioner. For the sin of the theft of Marinette’s designs he plans to destroy Bob Roth and XY utterly and completely. He may be quiet and calm on the surface but there is in Luka the capacity for fearsome rage.

When he becomes Viperion he wields a lyre, the ancient Greek harp of the epic poets, instrument of Apollo. This ties him to Orpheus, most accomplished musician among the Greeks, who descends into the underworld in order to (attempt to) rescue his lady from death after she was killed by serpents. Luka jokes that music is a more natural language for him then speech and demonstrated with the way he plays Marinette's emotions in the opening of _Silencer_.

The orobus bracelet is a representation of the great world circling serpent, symbol of eternity and the All in All, the cycle of life and death. Jormungandr who waits in the depths for Ragnarok. Serpents are bringers of wisdom, good and bad. The great Naga serpent king [ Mucalinda ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mucalinda) who sheltered Siddharta Gautama from the Tempest as he became Buddha, and one offered knowledge of Good and Evil in the Garden of Eden. Apollo, god of oracles and learning carries a serpent coiled staff as does his son Asclepius god of healing. Luka is often shown offering Marinette and his sister comfort and support. Orpheus is also associated with healing as well as augury (interpreting the flight of birds) and seership.

The serpent is a symbol of fertility in both mascline and feminine aspects. Erect it is the phallic symbol. As Kundalini she rests coiled at the base of the spine prepared to twine with her mate and bring new life. Ouroboros grasping his tail symbolizes the union of the male (tail) and female (mouth) principles.

Viperion appears to be a portmanteau of Viper and Hyperion, “Watcher from Above”, a Titan and son of Uranos (heaven). He is the god of Watchfulness, Wisdom and Light. Father of the Sun and the Moon and the Dawn. First to map the heavens and read the signs in the stars. The human eye has special cells that recognize the shape of the serpent without recourse to the brain. Looking for snakes leads us to see. 

Luka’s extra years, contemplative nature, and insight into the emotions of the heart cast him as a mentor and teacher. He encourages Juleka to pursue her dreams, he gives Marinete a guitar lesson and the hug she needed in _Hearthunter_ when she was at the end of her rope.

Just as with Kagami there is important mirroring going on between Luka and Adrien. 

Which brings us to the snake in the grass. 

Aspik.

While the name sounds like _aspic_ , an archaic french form of asp, the sacred snake of the Egyptians that Cleopatra used to commit suicide, an [ aspic ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspic)is also a meat flavored jelly, developed as a preserving method. The art of French Cooking has a whole chapter so it's not like the show runners were likely to miss the joke.

The total cowl combined with Adrian letting out his Ladybug fan boi without Chat’s swagger gives us an image of immaturity and infantilism. He's going into this hiding his nature as a Miraculous holder, hoping to impress Ladybug. And he fails 25,913 times. This is anywhere from 18 days to three months of solid effort with no breaks to eat, sleep or go to the bathroom. Adrien is... very stubborn.

I think it is telling that his demeanor at the end when he finally gives up and before he suggests Luka be given a chance with Second Chance, is resigned rather than angry. While he shows frustration in the early loops, by the time he is flirting with revealing himself as Chat Noir to Ladybug, he seems a lot like the Adrien we see in _Origins,_ who has given up on his Father ever joining him for dinner. 

I think that they are trying to say something about what Adrien needs for being a whole person. As Aspik he is falling into the trap of "if I'm perfect they will love me" that he's in with his father. In his desire to impress Ladybug he completely misses that he’s already got her attention and he gets stuck in the same static loop waiting for ever to be good enough for someone to love him. It’s not just Marinette’s crush that he has a hard time recognizing. Kagami has to beat him over the head with it in _Heart Hunter_ as well. Given how his father and Chloé treat him he just doesn't have much experience with recognizing interest or affection that doesn't make itself explicit and obvious. 

Returning to the comparison of Aspik and Viperion, let's look at their two transformation sequences. Adrien’s is short and pedestrian and the final pose is hesitant, weak and goofy. He looks (and acts) like a complete tool.

Luka’s transformation into Viperion is powerful and menacing. It starts with him rocking a power cord on the lyre, flows through a flirtatious doning of his mask, and ends with a powerful stance and a hand raised in the serpent style Kung Fu guard pose just as with _Silencer_. 

I've got a theory that his success with Second Chance relates to Luka's inherently more ordered nature, and positioning as the premier musician in the group. He has a natural affinity for the kwami of Intuition. Sass grants foresight, letting his holder see a short way into the future and rehearse that future as many times as they want as long as they don’t go past the 5 minute boundary. What is more natural than practice for a person whose first language is guitar. Prometheus to Fluff’s Epimetheus, or Hindsight, husband to Pandora keeper of the light of hope. 

_Desperada_ is littered with references to the legend of Orpheus. Son of Apollo, greatest mortal musician, his wife _Eurudike_ ("she whose justice extends widely" ) is attacked and killed with a snake bite. He goes down into the depths and his playing of the lyre, a gift given by Apollo, is so beautiful that it convinces Persephone to plead with Hades to send his wife back with him. But, untrusting of Hades he breaks the strictures of the boon and loses her again at the cusp of victory. 

All of the giving of Sass’ Miraculous occurs in the underworld of the sewers, the realm of the dead (the Paris catacombs were once a traditional burial place), and Luka is given that gift at our Apollo’s (Adrien) behest. Sass grants his wielders a magic lyre to play. And it is playing that lyre to distract Desperada, who is done up in the style of the Mexican Day of the Dead (Persephone/Hades), that allows them to defeat her and free their friends and loved ones ( including Kagami and Juleka). Adrien, who ignores the counsel of Plagg (Hades again), Lord of Decay, Destruction and ultimately Death, fails in his quest to defeat Death and loses his Lady over and over and over. 

Unlike Luka, who is a composer and has learned to make new order out of the chaos of his surroundings, Adrien has just been taught to reproduce music perfectly (otherwise the prerecorded practice trick wouldn't work). He has no real internal order generating capacity yet, and without Plagg he doesn't have enough internal chaos to fight against the tendency toward stagnation that perfect order brings. The perfect order that is entropy and death.

His outing as Snake Noir is more successful because he has a better balance between order and chaos, and he is focused on the right task. He is moving forward toward a new victory, rather than a recapitulating a fight he has already won.

As a bonus, according to the theory of David E. Jones, propounded in his book [_An Instinct for Dragons,_ ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Instinct_for_Dragons)the dragon is a symbolic representation of the primordial threats to early hominids, raptors, large cats and snakes, all mashed together into one package of “things that kill and eat us.” Combining Sass(Order) and Plagg(Chaos) makes the wielder a baby dragon, a fitting counterpoint to Marinette's Dragon Bug, which also combines an Order(Tikki) and Chaos (Longg) miraculous.

In many ways Lukanette is one of the more healthy relationships in the show. Though even it has its problems. Marinette's attraction to Luka stems from his kindness and gentleness, it’s the same thing that attracts her to Adrien. On top of that he is a little older, his hair coloring, spools and black fingernails give him an air of danger. His skill as a musician and that he apparently already has a part time job, point to Luka being able to provide, and he has already expressed that he likes her and is willing to go the distance to protect her _(Silencer)._ It’s all of the best (to Marinette) parts of Adrien and Chat without the screaming fangirls, perfect image and complications of anonymous superhero dating. He is accessible (Astruc’s word) and an easy choice. 

Luka can seem almost too passive, though he is not just sitting on his hands. He has confessed, offered comfort and help, and even written Marinette a song. But he doesn't push her. This may be what she needs now, as she settles into the Guardianship of the Miraculous, but it can also be something that allows her to stagnate. It may be low key and low stress but could also drift into the shoals because each party is waiting for the other to make the first move.

As an interesting tidbit, both Luka and Kagami, who are older than their respective matches (Luka is roughly two years older than the rest of the kids in the main cast and Kagami was born in the year of the dragon which proceeds the year of the snake, which is Marinette’s birth year), have up turned [ Tsurumi eyes ](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TsurimeEyes)which are often used to indicate older, more knowledgeable and wise or cynical characters. Adrien and Marinette have the opposite [ Tareme eyes ](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TaremeEyes7HY) that are often used to indicate innocence and youth. 

Even if it is a foregone conclusion that Adrien/Marinette is the end game for the show, it benefits from the presence of viable alternatives as well as un-viable ones. Ongoing stable healthy relationships between Adrien and Kagami and Marinette and Luka are easily imaginable as in character. They have been given real time on screen and hopefully will be given more. 

####  **Poly-wolly Doodle All the Day.**

* * *

One of the interesting relationship aspects of Miraculous is that “all of the above” as a solution to the love triangles with Kagami and Luka is at least hinted at in canon. Not only do Adrien, Kagami and Marinette look like they are out on a date as a threesome in _Hearthunter_ but André proposes cones for each of the possible pairings. And when Marinette asks if he can do a cone for three he is not at all disapproving, though he rightly notes that its a trickier thing to manage. He knows that he sells relationship validation with his ice cream, and anyone who has done even the most cursory research into consensual non-monogamy knows that it takes a lot of honest and open communication and setting of clear expectations to pull off. 

The only reason André doesn't make them all one cone is because Marinette backs out. Based on the expressions and pink bubbles, Adrien and Kagami would have gone for it. It is Kagami, after all, that first noticed how beautiful Marinette is with her hair down. They are her first friends even if they do appear to be trying to introduce Kagami to the rest of their social circle ( _Desperada_ and [ @marinetedesigns ](https://www.instagram.com/p/B8g-XD6gLte/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link) and [ @adrienagrestbrand ](https://www.instagram.com/p/B6YDeANFQng/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link)).

Luka seems to manifest a quality termed [compersion](https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/attraction-evolved/201907/jealousy-or-compersion) in polyamorous circles. It's not exactly the opposite of jealousy, but describes sincere happiness at someone you love finding joy in another person. Luka seems to be sincere in hope that Adrien and Marinette can be happy together. This seems a family trait as Juleka appears to be enjoying Rose’s crush on Prince Ali in _Princess Fragrance_ almost as much as Rose is. As a bonus Luka and Adrien seem to hit it off on their first meeting and, per the official instagram, [ Adrien goes to the Liberty when he can](https://www.instagram.com/p/B325mvaFWi2/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link). This picture in particular sure looks like [ Luka and Adrien are holding hands](https://www.instagram.com/p/B1udNKGle9Y/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link). Per Ovid Orpheus (Luka again) is the first of the Thracians to turn to the love of young boys. In _Desperada_ , Adrien is quick to list off, to _Ladybug his crush,_ Luka’s good qualities. 

It’s easy to see why combinations of these characters have their own ship names. Note:I don't think I've seen LukaAdriGami or LukaGamiNette (though there are some apparently).

Thematically I can see the OT4 as a world model, with Marinette and Adrien at the center as the wheel of creation. Luka as the world serpent wrapped tight around to hold them together against the stress of life and heroing. Kagami, as the sea of chaos beyond the edge of order with a sword of lightning turning every which way to protect from outside threats.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My great gratitude to my betas for this chapter [theriveroflight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/theriveroflight/pseuds/theriveroflight) and [Khanofallorcs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khanofallorcs/pseuds/Khanofallorcs), [Talik_Sanis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Talik_Sanis%E2%80%9D%20rel=) with whom i discus Kagami frequently, and all the rest of the _Fabulous_ people at the [ Miraculous Fanworks Discord](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks), who have encouraged me and kept me going. If you write or draw for this fandom, or just want to, come play with us.


	4. All the World's a Stage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter will include an examination of one of the possible theatrical influences on Miraculous, Alya and Nino’s Characters and their relationships with Marinette and Adrien, and some revisiting of previously covered topics resulting from insights gleaned from watching the Miraculous World: New York special.
> 
> Updated (20 Oct 2020) to add an insight gleaned from [this discussion ](https://steelblaidd.tumblr.com/post/632556096923516928/hello-3-in-your-chat-blanc-analysis-you-said) on _Reflectdoll_.

## Tragedy Tomorrow, Comedy Tonight

There is a slight theatrical quality that comes with the nature of Miraculous being a CGI cartoon. CGI Renders are both time consuming and expensive so not only do the characters have an especially limited wardrobe but there are also a limited number of sets and, as can be seen when Chat and Ladybug look down in _Bubbler,_ the school, bakery, hotel and Agreste mansion are all within four contiguous blocks. It’s the same reason why it seems like there are only a hundred people in all of Paris. 

The theater convention of the [ aside](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aside#:~:text=An%20aside%20is%20a%20dramatic,the%20other%20characters%20on%20stage.&text=An%20aside%20is%20usually%20a,as%20a%20monologue%20or%20soliloquy.), where characters speak lines to the audience that are unheard by the rest of the cast, provides an insight into why some things go unnoticed. Like Marinette musing about Adrien’s scent right next to his ear in the NY Special. 

So as a way to look at some of the supporting cast and let's look at a very old theatrical tradition dating back to the 16th Century. 

###  [Commedia Dell'arte](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commedia_dell%27arte):

In the 16th Century a new theatrical form developed. _Commedia dell’arte_ consisted of a set of stock characters running as standard situations with everything turned up to eleven. Fanfic works on much the same principle, taking a know slate of characters and situations (reveal fics any one?) and exploring the different ways they can be combined. The standard _comedia_ plot involves two young lovers, the _innamorati,_ kept apart by circumstance and their parents and the antics their servants go through in order to get them together.

The Characters define well known types, smart and foolish, in four main groups: the _innamorati_ , the _Zanni_ or servants, the _Vecci_ or old men and the _Capitani,_ Captans. All of these character types show up in one form or another in Miraculous. I will start with a brief description of the classic characters and then discuss which members of the Miraculous cast they correspond to with a more in depth examination.

### Baby Baby Falling in Love

The _innamorati_ are almost as much plot device as characters, the mishaps of their courtship providing the mainspring of what passed for plot in the commedia. Plot being secondary to watching the well known characters bounce off each other and perform musically, comically and sometimes acrobatically.

Well brought up but not worldly wise, the _innamorati_ are infatuated with each other, themselves and the idea of love in general. There is no moderation in their emotions: either they are on cloud nine or the depths of despair. They are at once both courtly and generous and childish, pouting or throwing tantrums when they don’t get their way. They are always completely incapable of expressing their feelings to the object of their affection. They are tongue tied with nervousness, or full of barbed wit, when attempting to confess, needing the help of their servants to get anywhere in their relationship. Despite any bickering, the show is not over until they are happily married.

In Miraculous the part of the _innamorati_ is obviously played by our favorite oblivious dorks Adrien and Marinette. 

### Send in The Clowns

In _la commedia_ there is a group of characters called the _Zanni_. These characters are the smart and sassy servant-sidekicks and seem to have the only functioning brain cells in the cast. 

The best known of these characters is _Arlequino_ or, as he was known in Paris, _Harlequin_ . Harlequin is one of the _maskera_ , characters whose mask is so iconic that it means the character all by itself. Harlequin’s mask is known for its nose and eyebrows as much as he is known for his wildly colored, checkered costume (The Pied Piper is a Harlequin character) and wooden sword/slapstick. Typically he serves the father of the young man from our pair of hapless lovers, providing both help and guidance for the youth and mockery of his employer.

He is the lover of Columbine (French name), often the maid to the young lady and easily the smartest person in the cast. She is not masked but is identified either by a black and white, or wildly colored outfit. The third main servant is Pierrot, an older, sad clown, known for his billowy white costume with large buttons and white face paint sometimes with a teardrop under his eye. At its height these three characters were especially popular in Paris. 

The next group of characters are the _Vecchi_ , the old men or masters. Usually one of them is father to one of the _innamorati_ . They are foils to each other and obstructions to the lovers' [ troth ](https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/plight+your+troth#:~:text=plight%20\(one's\)%20troth,%22%20\(%22truth%22\).) . One of them is an old foolish scholar, _Il Dottore_ , the other is an old grasping miser, _Pantalone_. 

The last group provides additional color and are sometimes cast as alternate love interests. They are usually older. When male it is _Il Capitano_ , a pompous military man, if female _La Signora_ , a middle aged vain woman.

###  **Details Details**

Working back through our list of characters we see André and Audrey Bourgeois as perfect examples of the _Capitani_. Audrey can't see past her super stylish spectacles and André is both venal and obsequious, and horribly boastful. His costume as Malidiktator is a classic _Capitano_ . An overblown military uniform with ridiculous medals, none of which he has a right to, Including a larger nose a s was traditional for the _Capitano’s_ mask. D’Argencourt seems like an example of the swashbuckling Scaramouche variation, all in black and penniless, but proud in his aristocratic pretension. 

_Il Dottore_ is known for his rotundity, love of fine food and drink and dark scholarly robes. He can be both excessively knowledgeable and a font of pure nonsense. Dressed in the classic professor's tweed, he shows up in Miraculous as the delightfully incompetent Monsieur Damocles (complete with a two gallon tub of popcorn on the flight in the NY Special) a reasonably decent programmer but hopeless administrator (and hero). 

Now comes the main attraction, the _Zanni_. 

‘ _Zanni_ ’ was a common name in the Lombard-Venetian countryside used to identify an unimportant person. The _Zanni_ (source of the English “zany”) represented indigent country folk who came to town to be servants. In _la commedia_ they became clowns and like all good jesters held the mirror up to puncture the self-important balloons of the rich and powerful.

Popularized in France only in the 19th century as one of the classic mime characters, Pierrot has been interpreted in many ways. With a long, white face and a black skullcap he is always woeful and sad but trusting, despite the abuse heaped upon him. Pierrot is the long suffering buffoon, put upon and kicked around. Most often dressed in all white, but sometimes in all black he appears as Jean-whatever. The patient, attentive, ever hopeful concierge of the Grand Paris and the closest thing Chloé has to a true parent. He only takes on the classic face as the tiny operator of Mr. Cuddly in _Despair Bear._

Columbine is the smart, sassy, tricky, sexy maid to the female _inamorata_ and frequently the lover of Harlequin. She always has something to say and has no problem saying it. Her main task in the production is helping her mistress connect with the young man of her dreams. As part of this she will frequently use a number of disguises. Though many of the characters will disguise themselves during a production, she is the only character that will have more than one, making the Miraculous of Illusion a fitting accessory. Her flute as Rena Rouge and rapping in _Timetagger_ both callback to the importance of musical performance in the _comedia_.

Harlequin is played as both smart and stupid. Someone whose wild plans are as likely to blow up in his face as succeed. He is usually doing one of two things: chasing Columbine or throwing a wrench into his master’s schemes, whether those are to make more money or keep the young lovers apart. He is the most acrobatic of the characters and will frequently sing, parodying high class music.

Both characters dress in wildly colorful costumes and typically have come from out of town to serve their respective employers.

The number of parallels between these two characters and Alya and Nino are striking. Both of our canonical BFFs are from former French colonies. Nino from Morocco, Alya from Martinique. Matching the Zannis' traditional “out of town” origins. In pure street smarts and intellectual inquisitiveness Alya beats everyone else in the cast hands down, her plaid shirt is one of the more colorful class outfits and her black and white Lady WiFi ensemble matches another standard color scheme for Columbine. As a bonus they pick up and play with the “sassy black best friend“ trope that has become common in more recent (comparatively) media . 

Nino has easily the most colorful outfit of all the characters in the show with his red hat and bright blue shirt and collection of wristbands. His design as Bubbler is even more reminiscent of Harlequin's eye-searing dress. His role as DJ mixing music echoes the traditional character’s musical remixing in the _Commedia,_ and he wields his bubble wand as wildly as the particolored clown ever swung his wooden slapstick. 

We witness that Nino has inherited Harlequin's acrobatic acumen in _Miraculer,_ when we watch him and his girlfriend practicing _le parkour_ across the Pont des Arts while carrying their ice creams from Andre.

For the final correspondences, Nino and Alya are the most active characters trying to get the confused lovebirds to figure themselves out. Assistance from others dragged into their wild schemes notwithstanding (or as in the NY Special where someone else has the plan and they sign up whole hog with no resistance).

This brings us to the last correspondence and our one missing character. Harlequin is generally in the employ of the father of the young man and spends most of his time working to circumvent the road blocks his boss puts on him and the young man chasing his love. This character is the pivotal antagonist of the story. A pinch faced grasping miser, spare and lanky against _Il Dotore_ ’s spherical physiognomy. He has no patience and less sense of humor, and under his drab cloak his spindle shanks are clad in the bright red trousers that give him his name [ _Signor Pantalone_ ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantalone).

Yes, here we find an explanation for the suit that Gabriel Agreste wears. It is a signal and reminder of who he is in the story. Like the classic Sir Pantalone, Gabriel is a man of extreme emotion, cursing every setback in high style. The _commedia_ character is petty, never forgetting a debt or a slight. He is entirely absorbed in himself and his own status, convinced of his own place as the smartest man in the room. Often a widower he works to keep his son from the woman he loves, most obviously for Gabriel in _Chat Blanc_. Pantalone dresses all in red except for a dark cloak. His accoutrements scream “money” just like the Agreste Mansion, bodyguards and private jet. Often spectacled, he carries a cane that is more a weapon then support. Pantalone has a hooked nose and bushy eyebrows, which Gabriel shares. And while he doesn’t have a pointy beard like tradition, Gabriel’s chin is quite sharp.

As the oldest character in the _commedia_ , his bouts of acrobatics are followed by lengthy recovery (a trait more of Mayura than her Boss). In MLB, Hawk Moth stands to the back, sending minions rather than engaging in combat himself. Though not visibly old, as Nino and Adrien muse in _Bubbler_ he seems to never have been young.

Just as Harlequin works to subvert his master's will, so too is Nino ever endeavoring to get his Best Bro out from under the thumb of his Dad's crushing expectations to give him a little fun and hook him up with the girl of his dreams.

In the _Commedia,_ while plots were standard the dialogue was improvised, allowing the characters to comment on local and current events. Nino and Alya are the most likely characters to comment directly on what's going on. Acting as a sort of Greek chorus for the putative 7+ audience especially with regards to the Adrienette ship. Helping the audience remember what it looks like is happening in Adrien and Marinette’s relationship to the class that doesn't know about the other three sides of the Square. That Nino is a DJ and budding filmmaker and Alya is a blogger with the goal to be a journalist helps cement them in the role of commentators on the action. 

As the Beta Couple and Best Friends of Adrien and Marinette, Alya and Nino provide a study in contrasts that illuminate what is happening between the series _innamorati_.

###  **No half and half romance will do!**

Their romantic relationship begins, in _Animan,_ with a double nod to the iconic scene in the classic French play, [ Cyrano de Bergerac ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrano_de_Bergerac_\(play\)), when Cyrano assists his younger and handsomer friend, Christian, to woo the object of their common affection, Cyrano’s cousin Roxane. Cyrano is sure he is unworthy of love because of his (like Nino’s) large nose, and so prompts the much less witty Christian with smooth words outside her window. Ultimately Cyrano takes over the delivery of those words himself, sending Christian to claim the reward. 

In Animan, Nino is suddenly tongue tied around his childhood friend and so enlists Adrien to be his Cyrano, just as Marinette does with Alya. The irony of course is that after being locked in the gorilla cage together, and having time to talk, it's Alya and Nino that find they are a good match and they are official from that point on. Especially effective thematically as it’s Marinette and Adrien’s inability to have a decent conversation that is the major roadblock to their own realization of love.

We see how devoted they are to each other with Nino’s decision to stay with Alya when she becomes infected in _Zombizou,_ but the next major step in their relationship occurs in _Anasi_ . As the episode opens we find our four friends on what is for all intents and purposes a double date, even if Adrien is only there by video call (which has led the oblivious twins to have missed that fact). We see Alya and Nino racking up the points with their perfectly in sync dance moves topped with Nino’s delightfully over the top final pose. A nod to his role as Chat’s second and mirror and the playful antics of the guy in “the clown costume” as Ladybug calls him in _Reflekdoll_. Further mirroring of Chat occurs as he struggles with Anansi in arm wrestling, to prove he can protect Alya so Nora will let her go out (not surprising as she easily has a foot of reach and height and a 20 kilos of pure muscle on him). This goes along with Adrien’s struggle against the restrictions his father puts on him in leaving to see his friends. 

Over the course of the episode Nino is given first, Chat’s staff, and then his own Miraculous, one that emphasizes his assumption of Chat’s role as Ladybug’s protector and shield.

When he is caught in the web, this Dude’s distinctive verbal mannerisms give him away almost immediately to the person who knows him best. A fact she demonstrates in _Mayura_ , being completely unsurprised at who is under the Shell when they both get their Miraculous together. That episode also demonstrates how the idea that being in a relationship can be a distraction, because it’s Alya’s akumatization that gives Hawk Moth the opening to akumatize him. This does however lead to their next relationship upgrade as we watch them in the above mentioned parkour ice cream date in _Miraculer_ . Their easy and fluid synchronization indicates that such hero training is probably a typical part of their usual romantic routine. _Oblivio and Stormy Weather 2_ give us _two_ interrupted kisses between DJWiFi, making it obvious that “Super Penguino” was not the most important thing that they got caught doing in that broom closet. That their almost kiss led to the first real LadyNoir kiss is a wonderful piece of ironic story telling. DJWiFi has achieved both the combat coordination present in LadyNoir and a level of romantic intimacy that Adrienette can only dream of. Alya and Nino model the fandom’s dream of Love Square resolution.

The piece de resistance is in _Heart Hunter_ and _Miracle Queen_ . When the wasps are let loose they catch Nino and Alya gathered with her family for dinner. Nino is on Otis’ right hand and the looks and gestures around the room make this as obvious an official recognition by Dad and big sister, both of whom can probably break his civilian self in half, that he is deemed an acceptable suitor. Consider also how much pressure Alya’s mom would have had to apply to absent herself from the kitchen at the Grand Paris, where she is head chef, when the Mayor, _her boss,_ is having his 20th wedding anniversary and recommitment ceremony. Alya and Nino’s body language make this about as obvious a _meet the parents_ situation as it can get. 

Their posture sitting on the banks of the Seine at the end, after it's possible they know that Hawk Moth has discovered their identities and they are retired as Heroes, is very close and connected. Alya is practically in Nino’s lap, even without ice cream, whereas Marinette and Adrien take their solitary cones to opposite ends of the row of couples. From the dividing bathroom door in Season One to the separate sewer tunnels in Season Two (a scene that is clearly called back to when Adrien renounces his Miraculous in the NY Special), to this season finale where they sit at opposite ends of their row of friends, Adrien and Marinette having been growing further and further apart.

In contrast, all through the NY Special we see Alya and Nino operating in comfortable harmony as they try to get their friends to just be honest with themselves and each other about their feelings. Meanwhile, Adrien has trouble identifying what he is feeling and Marinette thrashes as she alternates between calm and complete meltdown. 

* * *

## New York, New York, It's a Hell of a Town

In this section I will examine the potential insights that come from revisiting the previous chapters in light of things we were shown in the New York City Special.

### Cosmology and Storytelling

This story really expands the universe and changes the context of the Series. First, not only did it establish that there are other culturally ordered collections of Miraculous but that there are other kinds of magic out in the world besides them. Aeon immediately recognizes that there is something magical about Hawk Moth’s proxy. So Fu’s fear in the midst of WWII makes a lot more sense. Knight Owl is the latest in a line of heroes stretching back to the wild west, and there is an image from. And if there are heroes then it's no wonder that he fears that wicked people would recognize what is in his box and take them for evil purposes. His determination to hide after destroying the Monastery means that he has been out of touch with others who could have helped him learn. He has the wisdom of his experience but has not benefited from the wisdom that only comes with sharing that experience with others. And it looks like the Guardian of the North American Box has also been in hiding, taking magic out of circulation. His box is also full, waiting only on the claw to be complete. 

That Liiri represents the concept of freedom, specifically internal freedom, has lots of interesting resonances with the questions raised by Hawk Moth and the akuma. Questions that will be addressed in a later essay. Relevant to the relationship arc discussed in this essay, I can't help but connect Nino's comments on Adrien’s need to get out of his shell and the song in the Musical _1776_ sung by John Adams, Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson during the reading of the Declaration (“ [ We’re waiting for the chirp, chirp, chirp, of an eaglet being born. ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vM09UBbQA9I)”)

Because there are both other heroes and other ways of being heroes and other magic, Paris’ easy acceptance of both Hawk Moth and Ladybug and Chat Noir’s activity in opposing him makes more sense. That some heroes operate without hiding their identities brings into question Fu and the kwamis' instance of absolute secrecy. 

Aeon’s care in maintaining LB and CN’s secrets, even from each other, is a recognition that those boundaries are and must be chosen by each hero to deal with their particular circumstances. That the solution that is appropriate for one person is not necessarily the solution that will work for another. In the same way each person must be in control of their own extension of trust. 

### Chloé and Sabrina

A recent tweet indicates that the special as originally conceived had about another hour’s worth of story to tell, including an arc for Chloé. Even without a focus on it, the small snippets we see paint an interesting picture of what has been happening in her life. Knowing that her default is to put the best face on things and cover pain with hauteur, Chloé’s statement that she’s not going tells us two things. 

Notice that she doesn't talk about having no need to go because she has been before. This coupled with knowing that her mom is still in Paris tells us that one of the reasons she wants to stay, is to be with her mom. She is still seeking validation from that quarter and not getting it. That she is on the trip is an interesting occurrence as it means that she wasn't able to convince her father to let her stay home. 

With her mother present in Paris, she is in conflict. On the one hand she wants to spend time with her mother, but her mother is not nearly as interested. On the other, Audrey’s presence means that André doesn't bend to accommodate Chloé’s will nearly as often particularly when what Chloé wants is in conflict with what Audrey wants. If Audrey doesn't want Chloé around away she goes.

Chloé doesn't want to be with the class, something we have identified as being an issue of status and maintaining her position as some one special and different, exceptional even. This shows up in the way she goes up to first class, her reaction to the hotel, her refusal to take part in the rooftop party and hiding her enjoyment of the fireworks. All of them because they are too “low class”. Her hiding her head in her pillow during the party is a sad testimony to her determination that maintaining her status is more important than anything else, including making friends and enjoying her trip.

It's also a possibility that she is worried about spending any more time than necessary around the people she knows were also bearers of the Miraculous and now no longer can be. 

Watching Sabrina is even more instructive. She is startled when Chloé says she isn't going and, from her expression, she wants to go but thinks that she needs to stay with Chloé. When we see them get on the plane you can see that Sabrina is disappointed that remaining with Chloé means that she won't be with the rest of the class, and vice versa. As we see her sleeping next to Ivan and Mylene with the rest of the class later it’s likely that only Chloé has first class tickets. It is again a sign that Sabrina is eventually going to have to choose and Chloé is making it harder and harder to choose her. 

At the Hotel she first looks at the other kids playing in envy and then blushes as she shares a look with the young man who winks at her then comes to invite her up to the party, away from where she is sitting miserably next to Chloé in her funk. At the party she is shown leaping into the air with long flowing flowered hair as her gift from Hot Dog Dan’s incredible comestibles. A sign of her desire to be more free and to grow. Something that has been hinted at in several of the akuma attacks over the seasons. 

Her sincere pleasure at Chloé finally, _after a whole week,_ enjoying _something_ about their trip as she stands next to her summer romance is an extra emphasis on just how seriously Chloé has isolated herself. She is stuck in a morass of misery because she would rather stay where she is than do the hard scary thing of admitting that she was wrong and that her mother's life is really no way to live.

The hardest thing is going to be that Sabrina is finding that being Chloé’s best friend just isn't enough. Not when, with Marinette as class president, friendship with the rest of the class is so easily attainable. Especially as her interest turns from trinkets to boys. One of the traditional manifestations of the queen bee’s social power is in controlling which of her friends has access to the top tier of the boys. Something Chloé doesn't have, and so loses the last carrot that she had to buy Sabrina’s loyalty. As she grows closer to the rest of the class and farther from Chloé it becomes more and more likely she will also have the opportunity to wield a Miraculous 

It’s easy to foresee that in the next season Chloé will finally hit the point at which the pain of change is less than the pain of staying the same, and she may finally be ready for the redemption that so many fans (me included) have wanted for her. 

### Don’t Go Breaking My Heart

EDIT: [Astruc's Commentary on the state of the romantic field in the special and going in to S4. ](https://laazybugnoirworld.tumblr.com/post/636812984804589568/how-the-adrienmarinette-relationship-takes-place)

We only see Kagami and Luka for brief moments but those brief interactions are instructive in regards to both their characters and their relationships with Adrien and Marinette.

Kagami has maybe a minute on screen between her fencing with Adrien and her conversation in the locker room afterwards but it is a very busy minute. First we see her beating him on the piste, something she states she would enjoy more if he wasn't so distracted since he would put up a decent fight. When he expresses his disappointment with missing the trip with his friends her response is “great, more fencing” not “we should go on a date.” Something that, given the way she kisses him and the way he accepts that kiss, should be part of their repertoire. 

This is a kiss given and received, to offer support, between people who have had more romantic kisses, and have gotten to the comfortable stage. Whatever your ships, it's a good kiss. 

_She placed a finger under his chin to lift his downturned gaze back to her eyes. A gentle kiss at the corner of his mouth was answered with a sad smile, but it was still a smile. It was good to see his spirit lift. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She said and waved as she left._

Kagami’s life is almost as tightly constrained as Adrien’s. The main difference is that she feels joy in the path that has been set for her. Her desire to make friends her own age notwithstanding, Kagami _LIKES_ being a fencing prodigy. It gives her a sense of accomplishment. Something that modeling does not give Adrien. And it's obvious that, despite his skill, Adrien doesn't love the sword the way she does.

All of Kagami’s relationships with other people are structured as some kind of competition: Adrien and her mother are sparring partners, Marinette is a romantic rival that she became friends with as teammates for a competitive puzzle. 

She doesn't know how to relate to people outside of that competitive environment. And that is, honestly, the last thing that Adrien needs in a girlfriend, given that his relationship with his father is a perpetual fight. One that he really can’t win short of the day he turns 18 and can walk out of the house and not come back. Kagami at least has the chance of besting her mother at the sword, and Tomoe has shown a willingness and capacity to change, for Kagami’s sake, that Gabriel has not demonstrated for Adrien’s. Despite the similarity between their parents in demanding high standards of performance they have fundamentally different relationships. Kagami and her mother interact from a place of fundamental honesty. Second place may be first loser but the response is, "see, study, improve." Kagami has never needed to or learned how to hide her self, nor how to deal with any weakness that can't be trained out off. It's part of her struggle with "making friends", she can't fake a smile. What you see is what is, there is no act.

Adrien , on the other hand is always acting. As the dutiful and submissive son, as the rebellious teenager as the cheerfully friend, as the comic relief side kick. Robin to Ladybugs Batman. Every good thing that Adrien has, school, friends, time to play, is either a secret stolen slice of time or a provisionally granted privilege that can be revoked at Gabriel’s whim as a method of controlling him. He has learned to play the part [and the more stressed he is the thicker the mask grows.](https://steelblaidd.tumblr.com/post/632556096923516928/hello-3-in-your-chat-blanc-analysis-you-said) A thing that neither Marinette, in either guise, nor perhaps Kagami can really comprehend. Adrien is in desperate need of someone's shoulder to cry on, just like Marinette did on both his and Luka's in _Miracle Queen_. But he also needs to be his Lady's rock. That is his role.

Kagami does not know how to recognize his need for a safe place to be vulnerable in. Nor would she really know what to do to help if he did let loose. By now his upper lip is so stiff that when it breaks the whole face will go with it. Kagami is, maybe, able to aid and abet small acts of rebellion when Adrien suggests them, such as sneaking away to the Liberty and escaping the Bourgeois ceremony, but she is not currently equipped to offer comfort. Her prime emotion, when hurting, is anger, Adrien’s is melancholy. He needs someone to mourn his losses with him, not just fight to right the wrongs done. 

This is part of why his argument with Ladybug is so devastating to his self-esteem and his combat effectiveness. Despite their merry war of words and her constant deflection of his romantic advances, this is the first real fight they have ever had. Both its length and intensity are unprecedented. It is the first time she has been honest to goodness _angry_ with him ( _Glaciator, Syren,_ and _Frozer_ all have Chat momentarily peeved at Ladybug, and she is at best irritated in _Oblivio_ at his calling them a couple). It's her declaration that she can’t trust him any more that breaks his composure so that Technolizer can grab him and toss him at her in such a way that, had Aeon not interposed herself, he would have cataclysmed Ladybug. 

The last time we saw him do that to something he didn't intend to was when he was captured by Copycat, and when he almost got Bunnyx’s watch in _Timetagger_ she dodged. Which Ladybug could have easily done as well, if she wasn't also distracted by her anger. While he has occasionally gotten them in trouble due to goofing around, it’s rare and he doesn't break things he doesn't mean to. 

The last straw is Majestia and Knight Owl berating both of them for _his_ failure to keep everyone safe. Not only has he just missed killing someone by virtue of Lucky Charm, and broken Ladybug’s trust and composure, but even worse, he has sullied her name in the eyes of two of the great heroes. His actions have reduced his magnificent Lady to glorified clean up crew for his screw ups.

He has damaged the brand. 

And, in the House of Gabriel, _that_ is an unforgivable sin. 

It’s no wonder that he gives up the ring. Not only so he can't hurt anyone again but so he can't disappoint her. Then, when the car comes for him, he looks to his “Very Good Friend” Marinette, the person who fought so he could be there to see if she _still_ wants him to be there. 

_This_ is what Adrien needs more than anything, why he was so dejected when he couldn't go on the trip, so anxious for Marinette to sit with him. (Constantly following her around and trying to help in any way possible). He desperately needs to know that someone thinks he is worth their time. That they _want_ him to be with them. That he is good for something more than to be a pretty looking meat shield with a standup routine.

Kagami gives him this to a degree, but the time she tends to spend with him is still primarily in pursuit of her own excellence, not the soothing of his heart.

* * *

Luka and Marinette are another “blink and you'll miss it” bit of characterization. 

Luka’s willingness, and ability, to try and catch the bus after Marinette has likely overslept, demonstrates how much she means to him. He loves her but is remarkably content to let her figure out her feelings without pressuring her, a contrast to Kagami’s insistence that Adrien’s indecision is hurtful. He knows she is infatuated with Adrien. Her babbling about his rival, that Luka accepts with a smile, would make that clear, even if nothing previous had. Luka offers comfort and patience and a wish that she comes to know her own mind. Her kiss goodbye, on his cheek, indicates a comfort level that she doesn’t have with Adrien, but the decided lack of commentary on their relationship by the rest of the class indicates they are not considered a couple (Juleka is shown often enough to have said something). That Marinette does not mention Kagami as a reason to “just be friends“ indicates that wherever her and Adrien’s relationship is, they are [ also _not_ publicly a couple](https://www-vice-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.vice.com/amp/en_uk/article/bv89pz/how-do-gen-z-date-sex-relationships). All three relationships (Adrigami, Lukanette and Adrienette) are still in the ‘feeling things out’ stage.

This leaves lots of room for Love Square development. Which happens in two intertwined threads of the pure hero and pure civilian sides of the square. 

On the LadyNoir side we see Chat trying hard to calibrate his relationship with Ladybug. His gift of a yellow rose for friendship combined with her teasing about it is a great indication of how comfortable they have become with each other. Further shown by the fact that when he lands on top of her during the first Technoloizer fight neither even notices and they just continue their argument. On the Adrienette side, Marinette is claiming to be over Adrien, a claim that _no one_ that knows her believes, (her expression looking at the new ad outside Françoise Dupont is just as infatuated as ever).

That she is aware that she really isn't over him, just trying, is driven home by her reaction to finding out she is assigned to sit next to him on the plane. Her protestations of being “just a friend“ are more a spell to conjure the future than an accurate description of reality. [ As if by frequent repetition she can change her feelings to make it true. ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusory_truth_effect) Because she is afraid to express her feelings, they pile up having no appropriate expression, driving her to try and escape to a different seat. Though even there she is stymied by the inflight magazine which had another Adrien ad on the back. I note here that both ads are for watches, possibly an indication that her time for dithering is running out. 

Her waffling and inability to move forward seems to be reflected in the difficulty she has with automatic doors through the first half of the show. Marinette is stuck, unable to go forward despite what would seem to be a non-barrier. Adrien seems happy to support her in her difficulty, stating that he would be glad to be stuck anywhere with a friend like her, the phrase “just a friend” completely disappearing from his vocabulary. This is likely a result of his acceptance of the limits of his relationship with Ladybug and his tentative romance with Kagami opening his eyes to the possibility that Marinette can be “more than a friend” (to quote Alya). He is truly starting to come out of the shell that his social isolation has trapped him in.

Just like Luka has shown patience with Marinette’s emotions Adrien shows patience with her physical quirks. It is notable that it is Marinette being in physical danger that pushes him to become Chat Noir and break his cover.

Adrien seems happy to be around her during the whole special. There are a number of moments when they have close physical contact. On the plane he falls on her while trying to help with the air conditioning, he catches her when they hit some turbulence watching the sunset, then gives her a big hug in thanks for her efforts to let him go on the trip. In the hotel, when trying to sneak up to the roof and hiding from Mendeleyev, She places her hand firmly on the lower part of his abdomen. He is completely unfazed, and she is understandably embarrassed. This culminates with her pulling away when he reaches for her hand as they begin to float into the sky. It's only when he indicates his desire to dance that she finally relaxes.

Marinette's ongoing anxiety, that she is not good enough for him, is part of this. This is why she hesitates at his leaving in the car. Chat has just left her, in her mind judged _her_ unworthy. She then sees Adrien, her perfect, untouchable idol, which reinforces her self-deprecation. 

Marinette and Adrien meet each other at the front of the hotel in the rain. There is a flash of lightning and a crash of thunder just like in the umbrella scene. Only this time Marinette fails to make the gesture of reaching out, and so Adrien fails to make the connection to his feelings. 

Alya’s calling her out [ has been judged by some as pushy and the actions of a bad friend ](https://miraculouscontent.tumblr.com/post/631000272015130624/the-fact-that-alya-agreed-to-lock-mari-and-adrien) . But remember, just as in live theater (calling back to the discussion above), the characters inner thoughts must be spoken by _someone_ for us to see them. This incident as well as her teasing and her conversation with Nino on the plane are part of their Greek Chorus function to make sub-text text. Alya is also not pushing Marinette to _start_ a relationship but to come clean about how she feels so both she and Adrien can make informed choices. 

Alya has always been the symbol and catalyst of Marinette’s courage. In _Origins_ it is Alya who gives Marinette the confidence to push back against Chloé, and it is Alya being in danger that gives her the push to accept being Ladybug. Now Alya's words impel her to be _honest_ about her feelings, even if only with herself. Whether this makes Alya Marinette's shoulder angel, or devil, is debatable.

As Marinette grabs a bike and chases Adrien's car, like when she first realized her love for him under an umbrella, she admits to herself that, despite her efforts, her feelings have not diminished. Unlike her efforts to catch him and the bus at the beginning, supported by Luka, she fails to catch the car carrying him away from her. He doesn't hear her confession and _Adrien_ doesn't come back. Chat _does_ return to help fight Miraclonizer, the final boss form of Techno Pirate. 

Ladybug meets him with a hug and admonishment that he _never_ leaves her like that again. A statement that expresses her feelings for both sides of him and reconfirms her words that Uncanny Valley delivered to convince him to resume the ring. That she couldn't imagine doing this without him. Echoing her answer to his questions from the opening to _Frozer,_ when she told him, after another rose gift, that she couldn't imagine her crush not being there.

Of course, as she didn’t know that both her partner and her crush had returned to her, Marinette is still sad despite the celebration. Which is when Alya has the idea to make a banner that expresses the class' desire that Adrien be with them. Again returning to the idea that Adrien needs people to show that his presence is appreciated and desired. That they write it with the very informal French hello, “[coucou](https://snippetsofparis.com/informal-hello-in-french/)”, typically used only with close friends and family, is a sign of how strongly they feel for him. 

### East of The Sun, West of the Moon

Lighting imagery is all over the most important relationship moments in this Episode. Consistent with the cross-cultural usage of the Sun and Moon to represent polarity, and the previously established Daoist influence we can tie these symbols deeper into Adrien and Marinette's characterization. 

The sun symbolizes firmness, strength and power while the moon represents calmness, beauty, nurturing. In Daoist cosmology they are akin to male and female energies. These two forces are different yet interlinked with another and both are needed to make the day and night complete.

Going back to the symbolisms on the Dao(yin yang), we come full circle with this concept. The Moon represents the yin and Marinette Changeable but nurturing, source of comfort and calm to those around her, even if she is not at all at peace herself. The yin represents everything Marinette, including the spark of yang reflected in her role as Ladybug.

The sun is yang. Adrien has been previously in this series associated with Greek sun God Apollo. Adrien is much more steady and consistent then Marinette acting as her support through the episode Normally happy and bright his glow is somewhat in eclipse especially at the beginning of the episode before he knows he can go on the trip. Even after he is still concerned that he will “let Ladybug Down” as such the sun is setting in his scenes. 

The Dao is much more than just a pair of opposites. It conveys the idea that each of its parts is dependent on the other, as they continuously transform from one into the other. The sun needs the moon as much as the moon needs the sun. This subtle concept is being represented continuously throughout the special with specific scenes as the one with Marinette standing to look at the sunset and Adrien staring at the moon while heading back to Paris.

Their dependency for the other. The balance needed. Completion realized. That’s why Marinette said she couldn’t be Ladybug without Chat Noir. Literally, yin needs yang to be complete and at its best. The moon needs the sun to shine it’s brightest light. 

Observe that in the sun drenched scenes Adrien is actively moving towards Marinette. Whether becoming a better friend as Chat to Ladybug, or as Adrien taking more of a personal interest in the ‘Everyday Ladybug.’ When the moon is prominent we see Marinette moving toward Adrien. 

Ladybug and Chat Noir are seated under the full moon when she gives him the remote Chat call button. Chat calls himself substitute guardian reminding us that he is aware of Ladybug’s added responsibility with Fu’s forced retirement. His playing with it shows, in part, his giddiness at receiving a present from his Lady, even if work related, and her trust in his ability to handle things. That he can't stop playing with it is a sign of his poor impulse control. Gabriel's iron fist means that being responsible, but unmonitored, is a rare and unpracticed thing for him. 

The moon is a sign of change as it waxes and wanes, and giving Chat Noir the responsibility of being a solo operator is an indication he is and should be more than a sidekick to her. It’s the opening of the door to a more balanced relationship between the two of them. It's a big deal hence why Ladybug is noticeably exasperated with his apparent lack of seriousness.

This sign of trust in his competence is one of the pressures that leads him to make the choice not to tell her when his father insists he go on the trip. Ladybug has told him she trusts he can handle Paris on his own. He really doesn't want to go running back at the first sign of difficulty. He wants to live up to the expectation of consistency and dependability (yang aspect) she has placed on him. Unfortunately this is a mask. Because Gabriel has ultimate control, Chat Noir’s determination yields (yin aspect) to Adrien’s powerlessness before his father.

The next crucially lit scene is their sun set conversation on the plane. Adrien sees Marinette illuminated in the golden glow and seems to be realizing just how important she is to him. It’s the first time we see him initiating his first real embrace with her civilian side, the move mirroring his relieved hug after she avoids getting eaten by T-Rex in _Animan_.

The warm light of the sun emphasizes the hope and strength he gains as a result of Marinette's taking a risk on his behalf. The warm light continues through the bus ride where Nino gives Adrian another one-sided vision of his beautiful and kind classmate.

They dance under the light of a full moon at the roof party, again a sign of change in their relationship. We see Adrien waiting for her decision, only offering a welcoming and steadying hand (yang again) as she flails in panic. Marinette accepts the dance and stops actively trying to move away from him, but draws herself in, relaxing into his embrace as they twirl above the party below. 

(Side note: among the dancing couples seen in the overhead shot, besides DJWiFi and Ivan and Mylene, you can see Sabrina and her date and what I'm pretty sure is Juleka and Rose). 

It is noticeable that they are out of view of the moon when Chat abandons her in the sewers and Adrien leaves outside the hotel. This is due first to the intervening road, then the clouds and rain. When Aeon approaches Marinette to ask for help with the out of control heroes she declares that she is not sure she can even _be_ Ladybug without Chat Noir. Much like the Moon can't shine without the Sun.

Their emotional reunion, after Aeon takes Chat’s ring back to Adrien, is accompanied by a moon that has been pushed down to earth, indicating that a much bigger change than might be immediately apparent has occurred. Again, under the moon, it is Ladybug that moves toward the just landed Chat Noir, declaring her need for him.

The New York Special has shown us the most solid progress in the relationships between Adrien and Marinette and Ladybug and Chat Noir. Marinette is beginning to more honestly face both her fear and her attraction. Adrien is starting to make real choices, even if not always successfully, and to experience their consequences on both himself and others.

The story is now set up for some real growth to happen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always my great gratitude to my betas [MarlynMiro](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marlynmiro) and [Khanofallorcs](rel=) and all the rest of the _Fabulous_ people at the [ Miraculous Fanworks Discord](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks), who have encouraged me and kept me going. If you write or draw for this fandom, or just want to, come play with us.


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